Travis Kelce has spoken out for the first time about his miserable start to the NFL season after his miserable reaction to the Chiefs bench on Sunday night went viral.
Kelce has posted the lowest production in all three games of his career through the start of the 2024 season and has been criticized by analysts and fans alike.
Many have pointed to his hectic off-season and life with Taylor Swift outside of football as possible reasons for his relapse on the field, but Kelce has now spoken out, insisting, “It’s football, baby!”
In the latest episode of his New Heights podcast with his now-retired brother Jason, Travis said, “I’ve had a lot of catches in this league, man. I don’t worry about the catches and the yards and all that, I have the most fun when I get the ball my way, I mean, who doesn’t?
“It’s all about execution and making sure we do everything we can to win these football games, that’s always going to be the goal. I think everyone saw my drop in the fourth quarter and the crucial third down, just trying to do too much before I threw the ball away.
Travis Kelce has had a terrible start to his 2024 season with just eight catches in three games
Kelce has been in a high-profile relationship with Taylor Swift for just over a year now
“That’s probably the biggest thing for me, is making the play in big moments like this. I think with the way defenses are playing us right now, I don’t really get a lot of opportunities to make plays on the field, but I don’t use that as an excuse.
“Looking forward, still trying to make sure I can help the team in that area, knowing that I’ve been that weapon for us in the past. Looking forward, everyone’s just adjusting their game in the right direction.”
Tight end Kelce has averaged over 10 yards per game in every season of his career so far, but this season he has 8.6 yards and has just eight receptions through three games.
While the Chiefs managed to win all three of their games — against the Ravens, Bengals and Falcons — quarterback Patrick Mahomes has gotten the ball to his best friend Kelce far less often than many expected.
Kelce has now broken his silence on the first three tough games of the NFL season
NBC analysts Cris Collinsworth (left) and Rodney Harrison (right) both criticized Kelce on Sunday
The reason for this is unclear, but Kelce is determined to push through and believes change is coming.
“Whatever it is, it’s football, honey,” he added. “I don’t get carried away with targets and things like that, I just want to have a successful attack and I think Pat is doing a great job of finding the open man and making the right decisions at the moment and we’ve got to keep looking, it’s a new attack, new players, new pieces and we’re just finding out how we can be successful all season.
‘As an attacking team, you’re going to have ups and downs throughout the season, you just want to make sure you right any wrongs and communicate well so everyone knows exactly where we’re going.
‘Nobody does it better than the coach [Andy] Reid and Pat Mahomes in that regard.’
Kelce was spotted on the sidelines Sunday night looking particularly miserable. Coincidentally, it was the first game his girlfriend Swift missed this year.
NBC lead analyst Cris Collinsworth admitted he was “baffled” by Kelce on Sunday night after watching him struggle so much in Week 1 against the Ravens.
Kelce spoke about his troubling start to the season on his New Heights podcast
Kelce spoke about the confidence he has in his quarterback and best friend Patrick Mahomes (left)
He said in commentary: ‘I’m just stunned. I mean, one game, big deal. Two games, okay.
“This is the third game now where we haven’t seen the magic of (Patrick) Mahomes and Kelce, and I can’t really explain that last one.”
Rodney Harrison, another NBC analyst, blamed Kelce’s recent disappointing performances on his other commitments.
He said, ‘He’s busy. He’s got a lot on his mind. Think about it. He’s doing a lot of different things. Media-wise, he’s playing football, he’s got other things to do.
‘When you are in that situation, you have to forget everything and focus 100 percent on football. That is the most important responsibility.
“He (Kelce) just doesn’t have the same speed. He’s still a good player, but I don’t think he’s a great, great player.”
Swift was spotted on a casual night out with BFF Gigi Hadid in New York City on Saturday
Perhaps the clearest evidence of Kelce’s dwindling following in football is that his biggest supporters are Taylor Swift’s fans.
The criticism, particularly from Harrison, sparked angry responses from Swifties, who took to social media to defend him.
One of them posted: ‘This is such a bullshit talking point. Because if you actually listened to Trav he would be 150% fixated on football.
“Outside of the podcast (which he films on his day off), we don’t see him. All the “stuff” you see him involved in is done during the off-season. I’m tired.”