With more than a decade of pro football under his belt, Travis Kelce has made a name for himself with his competitiveness and grit.
However, after the Kansas City Chiefs’ Week 18 loss, that was called into question by NFL fans. The tight end has made his stance clear on the entire matter.
Travis Kelce Shuts Down Conspiracy Theories Regarding the Bengals
Going into the last week, the Denver Broncos, the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Miami Dolphins were eligible to grab a playoff spot in the AFC. Joe Burrow had been on a tear and looked like a formidable opponent for any team should they sneak into the final Wild Card spot.
In this scenario, the Chiefs uncharacteristically lost 38-0 against the Broncos, which granted Denver the last playoff berth. Andy Reid fielded second-string players throughout the game, not involving stars like Patrick Mahomes or Kelce.
Fans across the footballing world accused the Chiefs of losing intentionally to avoid facing off against the Bengals (since they would have been the lowest-seeded team if they had won the Wild Card Round).
At 9-8, the Bengals were more formidable than their record given their potent offense (Offense+ ranked seventh). They ranked 15th in the NFL in PFN’s Wild Card Round Power Rankings, and while they ranked higher than Miami (19th), Denver was actually ranked the highest at 11th, potentially disputing the claim that Kansas City was ducking Cincinnati.
Kelce faced these allegations head-on during his podcast “New Heights” and gave a fiery response: “I ain’t scared of f**king nobody,” Kelce said. “I wanted them in the playoffs. I want to slay every dragon one by one like Mortal Kombat.”
“I don’t even want this to be like we play the lowest seed. Give me the best teams, AFC/NFC. Give me all of them, Mortal Kombat style. I’ll go through every f**king one of them. I’ll play them at the Walmart parking lot.”
“Listen, I love competing against the greatest. The Bengals were a fun a** team to watch there toward the end of the season. It’s a shame they didn’t make it in the playoffs because they would’ve made the playoffs that much f*****g crazier and that much more fun,” the 10-time Pro Bowler added.
The Chiefs will enjoy a bye week since they’ve secured the top seed and will resume their path to a three-peat in the Divisional Round. They will enjoy the home-field advantage as they begin their playoff journey.