Chiefs Back At It: The Kelce Perspective

Travis Kelce is a kind of touchstone for the Kansas City Chiefs. Who would know better what is going on with the team than him? The team was back together for the kick-off event of the 2018 schedule and Travis Kelce took the stage for the media and shared his view of things.

Before I get into what Travis Kelce said today, we must get a better idea of where he’s coming from. Kelce has:

• experienced an older brother going off to college and being successful…
• watched one of his best buddies, in Alex Smith, get traded away…
• spent the first year of his own professional career in rehab then returned with an impact…
• been unaware of his teammates were losing the last half of a playoff game while he was in the concussion protocol…

With Travis Kelce, you get the Full-Meal-Deal perspective of everything that’s happened with this organization since the arrival of Andy Reid five plus years ago. All the ups and downs, all the comings-and-goings, all the hopes and dashed hopes, all the building to this moment in time. Plus, one very special angle on things which Travis Kelce brings is… the experience of what it means to be a brother.

I know what it’s like to have an older sibling blaze the way. My older brother, Barry, once won a cross-country race in high school for the District JV title. However, he came home from practice one day during that year and said his coach had been talking about “me” at his HS team meeting. I was a runner too and had always wanted to see if I could take the same route the school bus took and beat the bus running to it’s first stop, over two miles away near where I lived. I remember the bus came barreling down the street with kids hanging out the bus windows cheering me on. Yes, I beat the bus that day but I wasn’t aware that the bus driver was the wife of my brother’s HS cross-country coach. So, when my brother came home that day, I was all set to tell him what I had accomplished but… he told me. Plus, he also said that his coach was warning all the runners to “watch-out” because they had competition coming up from the middle school.

The point is, Travis Kelce has experienced all that and more. He now he has a brother who has won it all. The Super Bowl. Matt Derrick, who covers the Chiefs, said,

“Seeing his brother win Super Bowl makes it feel more reachable to Kelce. Feels the Chiefs have a similar team, similar offense, good coaching.”

It’s much different when your walking in the wilderness, to have someone who can show you the way first. This familiarity goes beyond his sibling hints too. Kelce made some strong statements when his buddy QB Alex Smith left town. He said Alex did everything he could to help the Chiefs to a championship but that it was the rest of the team that had failed him and not the other way around. Funny thing about those statements is… they sound like a brother defending a brother don’t they?

That’s just how Kelce treats everyone… except maybe referees.

Travis Kelce also said that he’s excited about the tight end room and the players he gets to work with. He pointed out TEs Jace Amaro and Tim Wright, and said that this group is most athletic of any group since he’s been in K.C. 

That brings us to another teammate, Patrick Mahomes. While Kelce treated Alex Smith like a big brother, he treats Patrick Mahomes like another brother. Kelce said of PMII, “The throws he makes in practice are just mind blowing.” Pete Sweeney said, “Travis Kelce was asked to describe what Patrick Mahomes can do and he was almost speechless—said it’s hard to describe.” Kelce added,

“He just took control out there on the first day and that’s the biggest thing. Seeing that he has control of the room at such a young age.”

When a player with Travis Kelce’s experience gives you props, it mean a lot. Especially since the player he’s talking about is on the same team. Everyone is saying that Mahomes biggest issue will be his consistency. Having a team mate like Kelce should help with that. On, and off, the field.

A year and a half ago, Kelce said he wants to be a team leader. He may have become that guy right before our eyes today. Can he be overly emotional? Yes. Can he be filled with hyperbole? Yes. Can he give us insight into a situation that others may not be willing to address? That’s also a yes and thank goodness. Today may be the start of something beautiful.

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