Travis Kelce & Chiefs’ coach Andy Reid downplayed that shouty Super Bowl moment

Embed from Getty Images

There was a moment, in the second quarter of last night’s Super Bowl, where Travis Kelce screamed at and bumped the Kansas City Chiefs’ coach Andy Reid. It happened right after a Chiefs fumble, and Travis looked mad/upset:

There’s a lot of bad faith analysis of this moment, with right-wingers performatively crying about how Travis is “violent” and how the whole incident is Not What Football Is About. While I think it was an emotional moment from Travis, it did not appear that he consciously struck Reid, it was more like he half-accidentally bumped him. Both Reid and Kelce did cleanup on the incident after the Chiefs won, with both men saying that they’re fine and they’re coming back to the Chiefs next season and it’s all good:

The partnership between Andy Reid and Travis Kelce will continue for a 12th season, with both saying after the Kansas City Chiefs’ 25-22 overtime win over the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII that they would return for another season rather than retire.

Their relationship went through another rough patch in the second quarter. After Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco lost a fumble, Kelce bumped Reid and screamed in his face on the sideline before being led away by running back Jerick McKinnon. This wasn’t the first confrontation between the two and probably won’t be the last, given their plans to return to the Chiefs next season. This one was quite vivid, with Reid almost getting knocked off his feet. He said afterward he appreciated the veteran tight end’s passion.

“He caught me off balance,” Reid said, indicating the contact was worse than it looked. “I wasn’t watching. He was really coming over [and saying], ‘Just put me in, I’ll score. I’ll score.’ So, that’s really what it was. I love that. It’s not the first time. I appreciate him. The part I love is he loves to play the game and he wants to help his team win. It’s not a selfish thing. That’s not what it is. I understand that. As much as he bumps into me, I get after him and we understand that. He just caught me off balance.”

Kelce said his emotions got the better of him.

“I didn’t care about my catches,” he said. “I just wanted to … I wanted the score to be different. Coach has asked us to speak our minds and I just wanted to let him know how much passion I had for this team. He’s one of the best leaders of men I’ve ever seen in my life. And he’s helped me a lot with that, with channeling that emotion, with channeling that passion. I owe my entire career to that guy and being able to kind of control how emotional I get and just love him.”

The Chiefs polished their legacy by outlasting the 49ers. They are the fourth franchise to win three Super Bowl games in five seasons and the first to win back-to-back Super Bowls in 20 years.

“I know this is one of the greatest teams of all time, to go back-to-back,” Kelce said. “This is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I’ve been able to go through three times now and it gets sweeter and sweeter every time. You can call us a dynasty. You can call us whatever you want. I know what we’ve got is something more special than really what you’ve seen in the NFL.”

[From ESPN]

Yeah, I think it’s fine. Is there something to legitimately critique in good faith? For sure – it did look bad, especially with Travis being dragged away by Jerick McKinnon. But if both men say they’re fine and that it was mostly a passionate misunderstanding, I believe them. It definitely became one of the most meme’d moments, alongside Jason Kelce meeting Ice Spice.

Embed from Getty Images

Photos courtesy of Getty.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

121 Responses to “Travis Kelce & Chiefs’ coach Andy Reid downplayed that shouty Super Bowl moment”

Comments are Closed

We close comments on older posts to fight comment spam.

  1. Nikki says:

    Nothing new here from the Chiefs. All they do is whine, moan, complain and cry until they get what they want.

    • FC says:

      As a pro football player, this type of behavior is trash and it reminiscent of the horrible likes of TO and Antonio Brown. Most head coaches would have benched him, and they would be right.

      As a man/boyfriend, I do think it’s a red flag, but so is Travis’s cringey bro-y behavior in general. Yes, he and Taylor are adorable and I hope they work out, but I’m not going to twist myself into knots to defend his crap behavior on an international stage. How many little kids were watching and wearing his jersey? He should apologize, not downplay.

  2. Jkallery says:

    I don’t think it’s political or right wing vs left wing. I’m as Democrat as they come but Travis was out of line and shoved the coach. It was alarming. Taylor, run!

    • Rainbow Kitty says:

      My thoughts were that if he acts this way towards his head coach, essentially his boss, on a public forum, millions watching, how is he behind closed doors. I think the Kelce family, I am an Eagles fan but he is a hot head, and to me this is a red flag.
      In any profession, and just in life, you show never act this way towards another person. I don’t care if it is football and “tensions were high… he is passionate… he just cares so much”. It is unacceptable behavior.

      • Rainbow Kitty says:

        *like the Kelce family.

      • Robert Phillips says:

        He bumped him with his chest. It’s not like he took a gun into a club to kill or intimidate someone. Or got behind the wheel drunk. Or dozens of other things that NFL players have done in the past few years. He never once raised his hands to the guy. Good grief I yell at phone salesmen louder than that. Because they won’t leave me alone.

      • Rainbow Kitty says:

        @Robert You’re saying that unless it’s an extreme act like using a weapon it’s acceptable?? You may yell at your phone like this (take a deep breath), but you surely don’t yell at your boss (hopefully). Whether he raised his hands or not, this behavior is unacceptable. And, had it been another, lesser known player people would be yelling for him to be benched. He doesn’t get a pass because of his name.

      • StellainNH says:

        I had a big problem with that behavior. A coach is an authority figure that should be respected. I know that Coach Bill Belichick would never had tolerated that kind of behavior

      • Al says:

        I used this example as a a teachable moment for my kids while watching the game. I told them: You *never* scream at your coach this way. You never scream at anyone this way. The coach is the authority figure. I don’t care how much Kelce is paid. That behavior was unacceptable (to me) and I don’t want my kids thinking that it is okay.

        Yay for Kelce and Reid that they have this type of relationship. I would be embarrassed and alarmed if I were connected to either one of them.

      • Colleen says:

        Oh my god do none of you follow football???? This is the SUPER BOWL they were losing, he was fired up. Stop with the stupid DV dog whistles. Get a grip.

      • Kathleen says:

        @Colleen,
        yeah, some of us don’t follow football, but this is JUST Super Bowl. It’s a game that happens every year. Nobody would die no matter who lost. Perhaps commentators here aren’t the ones who need to stop and get a grip?

    • Elizabeth says:

      This. ☝️

    • Tisme says:

      Right? He’s only going to get angrier with that concussion syndrome. RUN TAYLOR!

    • Seraphina says:

      I agree, that looked not good and I don’t care what is going on – get yourself together! Taylor needs to be cautious.

    • Megan says:

      I thought it was a really alarming display. He clearly has anger management issues.

      • Lorelei says:

        All I saw was that one clip, but it does look like Travis purposely reached his arm out to either push the coach or keep him from walking away during his tirade. Not good.
        If he can do that when tens of millions of people are watching, I wouldn’t want to see what he’s like behind closed doors when he’s angry.

    • TOPS says:

      He just didn’t want a song written about him it he lost.

    • ML says:

      I’m also as Democrat ax they come and agree with JKallery, Rainbow Kitty, StellaInNH, Al, Kathleen, Elizabeth, Tisme, Seraphina, Megan, Lorelei and all the other posters here who saw that as a red flag. That’s not how you get angry at someone. Taylor, run.

    • pottymouth pup says:

      the reason the right wingers are all over this is because they are so deluded that they think that Taylor Swift is part of a PsyOp and that the NFL & Swift are colluding by rigging a Chiefs win, and that it’s somehow all part of the democrats committing election interference. I wish I was joking but the right-wingers are all over Swift and even threatening her

  3. BlueSky says:

    Let a black athlete do that and see what happens….

    • mel says:

      Ooof yes so real. Or a black female athlete.

    • Seraphina says:

      @BlueSky, 100% I agree. A Black athlete would not have such a forgiving public opinion or commentary on this behavior.

      • ME says:

        100% agree. This is a side of Travis I do not like. He is a sore loser when it comes to football. Hey buddy, it’s ok to lose sometimes jeez. He’s so nice and sweet in interviews but on the field he’s a different man. I know a lot of athletes are like that, but you don’t bump and scream at your coach like that.

    • lucy2 says:

      Didn’t Serena Williams get villainized in the press for complaining to a official once?
      There definitely is a massive double standard.
      I get that people are passionate, guys yell at each other on the sideline all the time, it’s the championship, it’s a physical game, blah blah blah, that’s just too much aggression and he doesn’t come off well in that situation, especially another player having to intervene.

      • Jackie says:

        She didn’t “complain” to an official, she was aggressive and threatening. “I swear to God I’m going to take this ball and shove it down your throat” was the quote. There are quite a lot of top sportspeople who behave badly at times. Golf is full of them.

    • Nic919 says:

      Bingo.

    • Beverley says:

      @BlueSky, you better say that again. Had a Black player, say Jerick McKinnon done that, the narrative would be far different. We’d be hearing croaking and bleeting about the violent nature of Black men and how smart the coach was to sideline or otherwise handle him.

      But white guys intimidating authority figures get viewed differently. It hits different if you’re white.

    • Kate (Not Middleton) says:

      @ Blue Sky 100% correct.
      I’m tired of white men getting a pass for every damn thing. Including genocide in Palestine.

    • Josephine says:

      I said the same on a previous post. Too many people are making too many excuses because he comes across as basically a good guy and he has the advantage of being white so he isn’t branded a thug the minute he looks at someone funny.

      To me his inability to apologize and his need to downplay things is the true problem.

  4. mel says:

    I’m sorry, he’s helped you channel your emotions and that’s what it looks like?

    I get the passion, I get the frustration but it was VERY early in the game and dude needs to actually learn how to channel his emotion and frustration. It took the Chiefs so long to win because they had no idea what to do when they were down and struggling. That is what makes heroes…people who learn how to handle adversity with grace. Stay calm ffs. Literally EVERYONE is looking at you. Be better and be ok SAYING you can be better.

  5. Becks1 says:

    I’m pretty left wing, and like I said in the other post, I’ve watched a lot of football over the past few decades and consume a stupid amount of sports commentary (I’m not as into it as I used to be but my husband is.) So its not a “bad faith analysis” on my part.

    Kelce was not fine last night. Of course Reid is going to play clean up, after they win the Super Bowl for the second year in a row – he’s going to defend him. I would have been MORE shocked if Reid had said “yeah it ticked me off” – that’s not something that a coach says about one of their star players after winning the Lombardi Trophy.

    But being pulled away by another player and ranting on the sidelines – yeah, not a good look, not at all.

    • Rainbow Kitty says:

      And the second time recently that he’s displayed these kind of actions on the sidelines.

    • Slush says:

      I agree. I think it’s unlikely we will ever know how Reid truly felt- he’s not going to get into it with the press, even if they had lost IMO.

      • Rainbow Kitty says:

        100%. This is not Reid’s first rodeo and he is not interested in fueling the fire.

      • lucy2 says:

        There was a kerfuffle on the Eagles sideline earlier this year (which I missed despite being at the game!) and the coach was asked about it during the press conference after and said “we deal with that privately, not in the press.”

    • Noo says:

      @becks1 that’s interesting, to me it didn’t seem like as big of a deal between Coach Reid and Kelce. Big Red is a big man. And I remember he bodied Kelce in the shoulder during the Christmas day raiders fiasco.

      Every head coach has their own way of doing things and unique relationships with their players. Football is a violent game and although you don’t really see coaches getting physical with their players (or vice versa) it seems to be part of the language between him and Kelce?

      https://youtu.be/Up-FKZdm5no?si=qWTi0W8Tn7dRYtct

      • Arizona says:

        I agree, I also don’t think it’s a big deal. Travis gets really worked up during the game, he went and hugged Andy later during the game and Andy patted him on the back. is it a good look? no. but I don’t think it says anything deeper about him that he was emotional about his substitute being in the game and fumbling the ball and wanting to go in again.

      • Nic919 says:

        This is a league that has shit fits over kneeling during the anthem so they sure aren’t okay with players coming after the coaches. This is being played down because Kansas City won and Andy Reid doesn’t want that to mar the win.

        This plays out differently if they didn’t win. And the NFL loves the attention that Kelce is brining with his girlfriend. They don’t want to brand him negatively right now.

    • Jayna says:

      @Becks1, you are spot on. I agree 100 percent with all of your comments.

      We were at a Super Bowl party. Everyone found it jarring and disgusting in that moment, but oddly enough, all of my side of the family, which we are all Democrats, were the ones who were far more vocal about it even after the game was over than the few Republicans there. So there is nothing political about calling out Travis’s really poor behavior. I get that they smoothed it over and in the grand scheme of things it was okay, but for me that doesn’t take away something I saw in him last night that shows he has a long way to go regarding his anger issues. I am just glad Coach Reid didn’t fall over.

      • Ginger says:

        Agree. Plus, after the game he seemed REALLY hyped up. It was odd behavior. I don’t know, something was off with him last night.

    • Nic919 says:

      Same here. (I actually watched the super bowls that Joe Montana won) It is absolutely not usual for any player to come up to the coach and start after them. Maybe the bump wasn’t intentional but no player should be aggressively in the face of the coach, especially on the sidelines.

      Jimmie Johnson wouldn’t have tolerated this, or Belicheck etc.

    • Lorelei says:

      @Becks, thanks for the context. I’m not a sports fan but that obviously makes complete sense— what else is the guy going to say in that moment?

      Maybe (??) it would have played out differently if it was one of the first games of a season or something, but the night of the freaking Super Bowl, of course they’re going to be all, “Nothing to see here!”

      @Nic, good point. He’s bringing the team attention that money literally can’t buy due to his relationship with Taylor, so yeah, they’re going to let a lot slide right now.

  6. Linney says:

    My husband and I (rooting for San Francisco) saw that screaming/shoving moment and were shocked. My husband thought it was disgraceful and said, “Imagine if someone who is not dating Taylor Swift had done that? Or a black player?” But I guess if you are dating the pretty white girl, you are held to a different standard.

    • DeltaJuliet says:

      Mahomes had his little tantrum earlier in the season (not the same as laying hands on his coach, I know) and everyone made excuses for him too. Apparently that stuff is ok if you are “good enough” to get away with it.

      • K.W. says:

        People can criticize the Niners for blowing it, not being able to win the big one, whatever, but they know adversity on the biggest stage, and they handle it with grace. You would never see a Niners player publicly blow up at Shanahan or any other coach. It’s not the type of culture they’ve built.

        Which is a reason I wish they had won this one. Casting them as the “MAGA default” team is stupid given that VP Harris and Nancy Pelosi support them. They focus on building each other up, and I feel like that behavior should be rewarded over primadonna tantrum throwing.

  7. sevenblue says:

    Some people criticize him more harshly especially because of the “golden retriever boyfriend” PR we have got for a few months. It is important to remember that we actually don’t know who these people are, there are expensive PR machines between public and them. This might be a normal reaction from him or very unusual behavior. Are American football players allowed to use roids? If so, it could be roid rage and the coach was understanding because of that. Whatever it is, he has full attention of the public now. That’s what Taylor was talking about when she said that the other person should accept living in a fish bowl with her. As Taylor’s BF, his behavior will get more attention and publicity. When it is good, I am sure it is awesome. However, when you slip up, it won’t be forgotten easily. I am still seeing memes about how Joe didn’t give Taylor the booth seat in a restaurant.

  8. Loolaa says:

    I’m not particularly alarmed by his behaviour here. I have a good friend who used to play profesionnal hockey. Off the ice, he was the sweetest guy. I never saw him get into any heated arguments ever and he was kind, respectful and loving with his everyone around him. On the ice however, he would not only scream at people but actually get into fistfights. Adrenalin runs high and it’s a high pressure situation. I assume the coach is fine with it, or Travis would have been reprimanded and possibly removed or benched long ago.

    I get why people are worried, but being in a high pressure match is very different than everyday life. If he had screamed like this at a person on the street or someone on a night out, that would worry me. But this, no.

    • Arizona says:

      this is kind of my feelings too.

    • Lizzie Bathory says:

      As former Chiefs player Will Shields famously said, football is a violent game. These men are literally performing violence (as well as skill, sport, etc) for entertainment. It’s a reason I often struggle to watch NFL games at all, knowing the damage they do to each other & themselves. I’m not surprised a person doesn’t switch off that violence switch once they’re on the sidelines.

    • mel says:

      Uh ok. But it also means these people CAN be triggered when under pressure. Sometimes pressure comes from. unresolved emotional conflicts etc that occur in relationship.

      I get sports are heated and intense, but when you aren’t able to control yourself when things get heated, that CAN be an indicator (not saying violence and aggression automatically comes out but I mean it has a higher likelihood).

      Everyone else on the team was in the same situation. Didn’t see anyone screaming at the coach.

      That’s a big no for me dog.

      • Elle says:

        Fair enough. But that doesn’t mean he is going to go do that to his girlfriend. This is who he is in his sport. And he’s not hiding it. The couple of ex boyfriends that were emotionally abusive with me kept their emotions on lockdown around everyone else. Nobody would have guessed how toxic they were. Honestly seemed charming and well mannered to others.

    • Bren says:

      TK is an 11-year NFL vet playing in his fourth Super Bowl in five years; enough of the excuses for his poor sideline behavior.

    • Dee says:

      These guys are hyped up on adrenaline. You have to be to keep running into the equivalent of a car crash on every play. Kelce and Reid aren’t executives in a board room. They are on the very loud sidelines of the biggest game of the year. Sometimes you have to yell to even be heard. It looked worse than what it was. It has nothing to do with Taylor.

  9. NotSoSocialB says:

    Calling her “girl” like she’s property? And that display was managing his emotions? CTE in the future? This all gives me the willies.

    • Sarah says:

      I’m not sure what calling her “girl” has to do with anything. It can be a term of endearment. My husband has called me that for years with no anger issues in sight.

      • Michelle says:

        He called her “baby girl” as a term of endearment. Like sweetheart or honey.

      • Kebbie says:

        He didn’t call her baby girl, he said “come here, girl.” Either way I agree it’s just a term of endearment.

    • Lisa says:

      Oh sweet Jesus! Really you’re just looking for an issue. Like seriously this is just beyond stupid. If Taylor- who is getting called this pet name had an issue with it she’d tell him not to call her that. She’s been calling out men and telling them what she thinks since she’s 15, so if she had a problem she’d let him know.

      If she doesn’t care why the heck do you? I mean I think the pet name boo is cringe but my friend loves her husband calling her that so none of my business, just ask my man not to call me that.

  10. Nuks says:

    I missed this moment and didn’t watch it yet, but I agree with the criticism. But what really pinged me was after the game on the podium when he was berserker scream-singing Viva Las Vegas. Obviously there’s nothing wrong with that, but he seemed more involved with doing what he wanted to do versus what maybe was wanted in the moment. That’s just probably insane hyper picky but that’s where I would be like, no I could never be with that person.

    • cassandra says:

      I watched that “Viva Las Vegas” moment and they panned to Taylor and she was clearly holding in her cringe.

      I think the relationship is real, I think they’re both happy for now, but I doubt they make it to next football season.

    • The Old Chick says:

      He was so adrenaline-fuelled. That screaming singing was bizarre but I bet he didn’t even register what he was doing. Interesting he confirmed another year when here I kept reading most saying his last season. I’m surprised at his age, with cte risks worse with every year, that he’s keeping on. The 3rd Sb drug.

      • Josephine says:

        he may yet retire. he really wants to be famous/do movies, and it doesn’t seem like he’s going to get hotter than he is right now. he isn’t really chasing GOAT because as much as his stats shine, he’s not a blocking TE and can’t compare to TEs that caught and blocked.

  11. Mslove says:

    The Kelce bros seem like drunken troublemakers to me. I think they both need to chill.

  12. North of Boston says:

    There is a warped part of my brain that envisioned a smash up of 2 of today’s toxic masculinity/violent outbursts threads:

    TK realizes he was way out of line, gets fined, owns his behavior, works on his issues and sits down for a live tv interview to talk about his need for help with anger management and emotional regulation, and that asking for help for mental health is the right thing to do

    suddenly a faux-enraged Larry David, triggered by someone talking about mental health issues, storms in intending to throttle Kelce like he did Elmo. only to find himself sorely outmatched.

  13. M says:

    If I were his coach, he would have been riding the bench the rest of the game. You don’t get to shove your coach and scream in his face and act like it’s normal. Kelce has got the big head for real.

  14. Feebee says:

    I’m a veteran Andy Murray watcher. This did not faze me in the least.

  15. Normades says:

    Is Travis definitely coming back? After watching Kelce the documentary I really wish both brothers would retire. They have achieved so much and I hope they move on before getting too injured.

    • Kebbie says:

      He’s just going to do more damage to his body and brain, but if he still feels that intensely, I’m guessing he’s not ready to hang up his cleats.

  16. RMS says:

    This is TK’s coachable teachable moment. He has teams of people that rely on him for their living. He has shown in the past that he CAN learn from stupid mistakes, and let’s hope he listens to people speaking truth to him about this one. I am not a fan of canceling people quickly, but if he wants to play in the big leagues, date the super famous girl, get all the endorsements, he needs to moderate his behavior. This isn’t picking on him, this is true for EVERYONE seeking that level of fame. The white hot spotlight will show ALL the imperfections. He seems bright and ambitious and mostly decent, so I am going to sit back and watch what happens over the next few weeks. If he continues to be a semi out of control bozo, well, he’s lost my interest and support. The world has plenty of self indulgent violent sports bros, he ain’t nothing special…

    • Kebbie says:

      The season is over, where are you expecting to see if his behavior improves over the next few weeks?

  17. Gem says:

    It wasn’t a good look. Hopefully he learns from it. Andy and Travis go back way longer than most people commenting. He can privately fix this with him.

    • Misah says:

      Doesn’t it make it even worse? That Andy is the one who’s basically given Travis a career, that they have a personal relationship on top of the professional one?
      Is this how TK treats those close to him when he’s frustrated for something as trivial (yes, trivial) as a sports matter? What if it’s something serious, something to do with health family money?

  18. CROWHOOD says:

    This is the pinnacle of achievement in a sport that is, by nature, aggressive. Of course emotions are high. I find The “run Taylor” comments a little much.

    • Lisa says:

      The run Taylor, the Travis assaulted Reid, this has never happened in football or sports. Are all a bit much.

      First he was wrong and acted like an ass, no question. Second this isn’t necessarily indicative of his entire personality and any indication she needs to run or that he treats her poorly. Third this was not an assault, people need to learn what words mean and stop with the hyperbolic crap. Fourth this happens in sports and football all the freaking time. Top athletes are passionate and competitive, and they will yell at coaches. I mean one of my favorite basketball players of all time was Rasheed Wallace and he’d yell and get in people’s faces so much he got ejected from a game on the injured reserve list. He’s also one of the nicest men on the planet.

      Finally we have to stop creating entire narratives of who people are based on single moment we see on TV. He was 100% out of line and wrong in that moment, that doesn’t make him abusive, or evil.

  19. Winnie Cooper’s Mom says:

    I was pulling for the 49ers, mainly so that the Mahomes/Kelce show could be humbled a bit. From his behavior on the sidelines and then on the celebration stage right afterwards, I was not impressed by Travis Kelce. He’s got great PR bc everyone thinks he’s a big teddy bear but last night showed he’s more of the grizzly variety. Yikes.

    • DeltaJuliet says:

      I’m so tired of them. That’s what happens when you win all the time and your face is everywhere (I get it I’m a lifelong Pats fan). I was definitely cheering for the 49er’s last night.

  20. Elise says:

    A black player for The Packers was ejected and fined for pushing a trainer. We didn’t see that happening here.

    • Beverley says:

      If there’s one thing Black people can count on is the ever-present, ongoing, insidious Double Standard.

  21. gah says:

    CTE is no joke. it’s probably already addled TK’s brain. my dad had a successful college football career and we attributed his rage to his upbringing, not realizing that the impact of CTE can start much earlier. only now (40 years later) has he been showing the other signs (forgetfulness, ADHD) that are, frankly, a lot less severe than murderous rage. (see OJ for another example.)

    I personally think we should ban American football and they should make headers in soccer illegal. the long term impact on individuals and families is too great. I wish the experience of being raised by a dad with CTE on no one.

    • Lorelei says:

      @Gah, I’m with you, and I still can’t believe we let children play it in school, given what we know about CTE (and I think we only know the tip of the iceberg).

      I’m so sorry about your father. And ITA about the possible violent effects that it can have on certain players— I read a good analysis that it could have had an impact on OJ, as well as Aaron Hernandez, and those are just the two highest-profile examples that come to mind, but there was a lot more info in a podcast I listened to about Aaron; it gave lots of other examples of players who are suspected to have acted out due to CTE.

      Some of my friends let their children start playing as soon as they’re eligible and I just don’t understand it.

      • OriginalLeigh says:

        It definitely impacted Aaron Hernandez. His brain was tested after his death and he was shown to have a very severe case of CTE. I assume what will also be the case with OJ. Unfortunately, they are not able to test people until they are dead. Frank Gifford also had a severe case, which resulted in him having memory loss and other issues later in life. Kathie Lee Gifford and her son recently spoke out against kids being allowed to play football.

      • Lorelei says:

        IDK if either of you will come back to this post and see this, but…😬

        (The article is a few years old but The Onion reposted it today)

        https://www.theonion.com/super-bowl-confetti-made-entirely-from-shredded-concuss-1819591572

  22. Michelle says:

    Thanks, Kaiser for writing an objective article about the incident. As a KC resident and lifelong Chiefs fan, I’ve watched the team and Coach Reid for years. If he says Kelce was passionate, I’ll take the coach at his word. I’ve seen Big Red angry and he wasn’t angry about the incident. If Reid was upset, it would show.

    Coach Reid is a tough coach, who doesn’t let public opinion sway him. One reason Reid traded one of the NFL’s best receivers, Tyreek Hill, was due to Hill’s ongoing domestic violence. Reid took so much heat for this decision and if the coach thought Kelce was out of line, he would have shut him down hard.

    • Jeanette says:

      This 1000%, I mean both men spoke on it, and its apparently fell on deaf ears. Let people speak their own truth and quit being so judgmental and twisting things to your own perspective.

      • Josephine says:

        the problem is that we’ve seen plenty of men covering for men over the years, and plenty of men who think that football players deserve to do what they want to do on the field so long as they are playing well. it doesn’t mean much to me to hear andy say it was fine.

  23. VilleRose says:

    There’s more of a microscope on Travis now because he is dating such a global superstar and he has said in interviews he’s learning how to manage the attention as he goes along. I’m hoping this is a big learning experience for him. Had he not been dating Taylor, people would probably have pointed out this moment as a no-no but I think it would have been swept under the rug after the Chiefs’ victory and it wouldn’t have been as huge of a deal. And I think we all understand that players get emotional and yell during games, but it’s different to be on the sidelines screaming by yourself versus pushing another person. The fall out would have been so much worse had the coach actually fallen. I doubt he manhandles Taylor like that behind the scenes, she would have dropped him like a hot potato by now. But hopefully he’ll be more aware of his body and physical manifestations next time he’s frustrated during a game. I don’t watch a lot of football (read: never) so a lot of this is eye opening to me.

    • Kebbie says:

      I doubt it’s any kind of learning experience for him, he was joking after the game that he was just telling Reid how much he loves him. He also spiked his helmet on the sidelines earlier in the season and he clearly didn’t learn from that or this wouldn’t have happened. He had the opportunity to apologize for this and he didn’t. I think him dating Taylor has people giving him the benefit of doubt when he doesn’t really deserve it.

  24. HeatherC says:

    Had it been almost any other player on any other team (cough Stephon Diggs/Josh Allen/sideline cough) the media would have made it a story for at least a week, if not more. That, using Diggs for an example name (but pick any other name for your own example), that Diggs was disrespectful, poor sportsmanship, heck they would have accused Diggs of assault. Just saying.

  25. Turkeylurkey says:

    This is where the whole family lost me (mom should have shut that disrespect down):

    https://youtu.be/Q4JUkdasN5c?si=NQXa5RUBdWxtLRBc

    • Lorelei says:

      Well that was gross! I hate it, thanks.

      (Obviously I get that they were kidding, but ITA that’s just a really gross way to joke about it. Ugh.)

  26. Kokiri says:

    It’s both alarming & disturbing to read how many are giving this incident a pass.

    We know how violent football is. We also know how the entire organization covers up violence, both on & off field. How women are silenced as they are abused.

    But because Taylor is dating this man, suddenly the entire organization was a given a pass.

    His behaviour wasn’t passionate, or wasn’t understandable or excusable. It was violent. Screaming in someone’s face is violence.

    • Truthiness says:

      I love that you think a woman is that powerful but Travis was like this years before he met Taylor.

      Coach Reid described his first 5 years with Travis as war and the last 5 years were unbelievable.

  27. Grant says:

    Must be nice to be a straight white man allowed to scream in your boss’s face with impunity! Can’t imagine this would have been hand-waved away if Travis had been queer, a POC, or a woman.

  28. QuiteContrary says:

    Keyshawn Johnson defended Kelce, asserting that Reid and Kelce have the kind of super-close relationship in which they understand each other.

    Apparently Kelce soon after hugged Reid on the sidelines and apologized.

    I’m not going to defend Kelce on this. It wasn’t a good look.

  29. atlantababe says:

    Red flag, if he acts like that in public…
    But apparently he was like that before Taylor and all the extensive PR started painting them as some power couple.

  30. butterflystella says:

    Yikes! That picture is worth well, ya know… I think about the movie Monsters Inc. and that moment Sully does his “scare demonstration” and Boo is TERRIFIED of him! That is one scary face on Travis!

  31. Ameerah M says:

    Talk about white male privilege…you get to be verbally abusive ON CAMERA to you coach – and get away with it. If any other BLACK player would have done that people would be calling for them to be suspended or fired.

  32. Andrea says:

    Red flag for me as well. If he is that quick to anger, he will be that triggered to anger with you. I would be scared to date anyone quick to anger no matter what the circumstances.

  33. Truthiness says:

    I’m waiting for Aaron Rodgers to blame this on the vaccine.

  34. og bella says:

    Y’all are delusional.

    Screaming matches happen all time between coaches and players. It’s the nature of the beast. Not saying it’s right, but this is not just a Travis red flag. And no, Belichick
    did not throw Brady out when he has screamed in the face of a coach.

    Reid and Kelce have discussed their relationship over the past 10 years and how it has changed and matured over that time period.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=INB3MfaI4NY

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32J2VBmuX7c

    • Ameerah M says:

      The two videos you posted were of WHITE players. Do you think a Black player would have gotten the same pass?? I’ll tell you – no. In fact Black players have been suspended for what Travis did. You may not see it as a “red flag” but it is certainly a double standard.

      • Becoy says:

        You never watched basketball in the 90s because Black players yelled in coaches faces. Hell one choked a coach and got a pass. (He was wrong and right it was complicated)

      • SIde Eye says:

        The NFL is especially racist, I agree with you Ameerah. Regardless of what happens in basketball, a completely separate sport, the NFL specifically treats White and Black players differently. The NFL (and ESPN which covers the NFL) have shown time and time again they are insanely racist – it’s why I don’t watch. Why I didn’t watch yesterday. If Brett Favre were Black do you think his BS shenanigans would be constantly swept under the rug? It wouldn’t happen. Your point (and that of the other posters) is valid that the NFL would never ever tolerate a Black person behaving like this.

        With the exception of the White Eagles player who told all kinds of truth about Trump, not a single White player stood up for a Black teammate on Black Lives Matter, kneeling, etc. Cowards in real time. They are never asked about this by the media, instead they are coddled to no end and asked why they don’t eat strawberries (when they have a red nazi hat in their locker but nothing to see here).

        Black basketball players obviously have more power, especially when they are superstars as the NBA is overwhelmingly Black. I do agree that the better a player is, the more of a pass he is given.

    • Grant says:

      Respectfully, I think it’s kind of delusional that you’re trying to defend a grown white man screaming in another adult person’s face over a football game.

  35. B says:

    Was there not an Oprah / Amy Schumer interview, years ago, where they both endorsed a moment of (almost dissociation) where they looked at themselves during abusive encounters in a cis-het SO relationship? The conversation then went on to feeling bewildered by how they had gotten there, as outwardly successful career women and no one would ever imagine that now they were cowering behind a closed door?

    The whole, but it couldn’t possibly happen to Taylor thing…… um, idk about that. Abuse transects financial demographic, cultural identification, religion, all of that. Maybe it hasn’t happened yet? But she’s not immune to it any more than the rest of us are.

    • OriginalLeigh says:

      This. No one would have ever imagined that Angelina Jolie would be a victim of DV, but it happened it to her and can happen to anyone. (To be clear, I’m not saying that Travis has been abusive or will be abusive to Taylor or any other woman.)

  36. girl_ninja says:

    This was alarming and not his behavior at all. He’s complained and whined (like most players do) but he’s never bugged out like that. Pretty terrible.

  37. Kansasgal says:

    After watching a grown woman jump up and down and run around on a stage after winning an award she has won several times before, attempting to forcefully drag an unwilling participant onto the stage with her, gracelessly snatching the trophy from the hands of an icon who suffers from a debilitating illness, failing to acknowledge said icon, all I can say is RUN TRAVIS.

    • Lisa says:

      Good thing none of what you described happened but ok

      • Kathleen says:

        @Kansasgal,
        really? Hint: when you need to add so many qualifiers to get your point across, your point is probably not as strong as you think. Behold: “Travis yelled at his coach” vs “attempting to forcefully drag an unwilling participant”. She certainly didn’t “snatch” anything, gracelessly or otherwise. Come on, are you seriously trying to tell us that ignoring Celine is worse than yelling at a coach? So, if Taylor yelled at Celine, it would have been ok?

      • Ameerah M says:

        It happened at the Grammys. But ok.

  38. Qtpi says:

    Taylor should probably read up on CTE. He is in his mid 30’s and his brain has been getting whacked around since Elementary school I am sure.

    I’ve mentioned before on this site that I have an ex Pro NFL QB in my family. Not a famous one but one that played a long time. I’ve lost count of the amount of surgeries he has had over the years and also he has had brain issues (mini strokes etc at a younger than expected age).

  39. Ally says:

    Travis does this shit once or twice a season its not new and its not cute. Its also not republican to….not want someone to be a dick to his coach?!?! Grow the f up.

  40. Rea says:

    As a longtime football fan having this type of interactions with a coach and player is usually a red flag. By no means was this a communication normal and it signals a conflict from within the team this is similar to what happened with Brady and Bellick they would squirm at each other and yell at each other. It got to the point where there was a middle man who would communicate what the other wanted to say since it created tensions in the team.

    I highly believe Reid will let this pass he is saying this in public so as not to lose focus on the Chiefs win but I would not be surprised if there was a private conversation with player and coach regarding behavior.
    While Kelce is riding high he needs to remember he is replaceable and popularity dies down; right now he is dating Swift but how long will that be? History shows she moves on fast and I do not believe she will be with him long term even if they do marry I do not see her being with him after his NFL career is over. She cares too much about optics and PR so she would want someone who is in the active spotlight career.

  41. Driadays says:

    So violent behavior is suddenly ok because you think the “right wingers” are latching onto it and calling it out?? lol, this website has gone down and is absolutely drunk off the liberal kool-aid! It has nothing to do with political affiliation or political view. It has everything to do with unsportsmanlike behavior and aggressive behavior. This is not ok. He didn’t accidentally bump him, stop trying to downplay this. Kelce was wrong and he meant to do what he did. I shudder to think of what his outbursts are like behind closed doors. You do not get physical with your coach; or anyone. Point blank periodt! Stop trying to make this behavior seem acceptable when it’s inherently wrong.