Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce dominated the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday to the tune of 179 yards and a touchdown on 12 catches in the 31-17 divisional victory
Head coach Andy Reid observed that the 34-year-old player continues to “improve with age,” while also acknowledging the potential influence of the Taylor Swift factor. Swift was once again present in Kansas City on Sunday, marking her fourth Chiefs game this season.
“The official transcript shows Reid jokingly saying, ‘Taylor can hang out as much as she likes,’ while laughing.
Reid may be joking, but it’s becoming humorous to track how Kelce and the Chiefs perform in games with and without Swift.
2023 Chiefs with Swift in attendance: 4-0 record, 28.5 points per game, 432.3 total yards per game; Kelce: 108.0 receiving yards per game.
2023 Chiefs without Swift in attendance: 2-1 record, 21.3 points per game, 349.3 total yards per game, Kelce: 46.5 receiving yards per game.
Over the past three weeks, the Kelce-Patrick Mahomes combination has been otherworldly.
Over the last three games, Mahomes has targeted Kelce 33 times, completing 31 passes for a total of 377 yards, two touchdowns and achieving a 134.5 passer rating. During this span, Mahomes successfully completed 29 consecutive passes to Kelce, tying for the sixth-longest streak by a quarterback targeting a single receiver. According to NFL Research, this is also the longest streak by a quarterback targeting a single tight end since at least 1991.
The mental synchronization between the quarterback and the tight end makes them almost invincible.
“I think the main thing is the way he’s able to recognize coverage and adjust on the fly,” Mahomes said of Kelce. “We always talk about it, but it’s something that you can’t take for granted. It’s almost like he’s playing Madden like he can read the coverage and stop in the windows and be open and be on the same page as me at all times. He did a great job, it seems like he does it week in and week out, and that’s why he’s the player he is and why he’ll be a Hall of Famer one day.”
On Sunday, Kelce achieved his second consecutive game with over 120 yards, making him the only tight end to reach this milestone in 2023. His 179 yards on this day were the second highest in his career, falling just short of his record 191 yards in Week 15 of 2021 against the Chargers.
Kelce dominated the first half, generating nine catches for 143 yards (the most receiving yards in a half in his career) and a TD. In Week 6 against Denver, the star had 109 receiving yards in the first half, making him the only player among all positions to have 100-plus receiving yards in a first half in back-to-back games over the last five seasons. Kelce (2) and Tyreek Hill (3) are the only players to have 100-plus receiving yards in a first half in multiple games this season.
Mahomes joked that Kelce’s first half should have been even bigger if he’d finished a 53-yard catch-and-run in the end zone.
Mahomes joked, “A younger Trav would have definitely made that one touchdown, I must admit. But besides that, I believe he’s doing an excellent job creating opportunities to get open and having these tremendous games.”
