Travis Kelce has arrived at Arrowhead Stadium ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs’ first playoff game of the season against the Houston Texans.
The Chiefs’ bid for a historic Super Bowl three-peat begins on Saturday afternoon with Kelce’s girlfriend Taylor Swift set to be in attendance.
The singer was exclusively pictured by DailyMail.com leaving her New York apartment earlier on Saturday and heading to an airport to fly to Kansas City.
In what will be a full family affair, Kelce’s brother Jason is also at the game in his role as a broadcaster for ESPN.
The Texans game will be Kelce’s first since the Christmas Day win over the Pittsburgh Steelers that secured the No. 1 seed in the AFC.
Chiefs starters like Kelce, Patrick Mahomes and Chris Jones were rested against the Denver Broncos in Week 18 before their bye in the wild card round, meaning they should be well rested.
Travis Kelce has arrived at Arrowhead Stadium ahead of the Chiefs’ first playoff game
Patrick Mahomes was pictured walking into the stadium ahead of the Texans showdown
With Kansas City on the precipice of doing something that no one has ever done before, they could be forgiven for having their minds set on that goal.
But Kelce dismissed any notion they are preoccupied and said the team is focused on the task immediately ahead of them.
‘I haven’t heard anyone talk about anything three-peat, anything like that,’ Kelce told Chris Berman in a sit-down interview with ESPN.
‘We’re focused on the Houston Texans right now. Anybody can get beat in the playoffs if you don’t come in with the right mentality, the right mindset.’
While Kansas City is certainly poised to three-peat – going 15-2 in the regular season and earning home field advantage through the playoffs, history is not on their side.
Of the previous eight teams to attempt a three-peat (Pittsburgh had two attempts), no back-to-back champions have even reached a third-straight Super Bowl – let alone actually win the Big Game.
Speculation is rife that Kelce may retire after this season, meaning the Texans game could be his last if the Chiefs were to lose.
The 35-year-old experienced a dip in production this season, leading many to wonder if he may consider hanging up the cleats after the 2024 campaign comes to a close.
Swift and her entourage were spotted leaving her Manhattan home early on Saturday morning
Two luxury vehicles were seen leaving the singer’s house as she heads to Kansas City
Speaking on ESPN’s First Take, former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky believes that the possibility of Kelce wrapping up his career after a third title is a ‘very real thing’.
‘Kelce is fully capable of being the difference-maker. I think he’s got one great run left,’ Orlovsky said.
‘I think if he goes and has that vintage Kelce performance, which I fully, one, think he’s capable of, and two, will do, and they go on and three-peat, I think retirement becomes a very real thing for Travis Kelce.
‘There would be nothing else to accomplish. He’d be arguably the greatest tight end of all time. He would be the tight end that was part of [Chiefs] only three-peat in the history of the NFL.
‘He’s obviously later in his career. I don’t think there would be anything left. And I think he’s got one, elite, great, difference-maker, vintage, ‘Oh my Gosh, he did it again’ run left in him.’
Kelce has been addressing the rumors about his retirement throughout the week as he goes on a media tour before KC opens their playoffs this weekend against the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional round.
‘I love everything that I’m doing … but at the end of the day, I’m not having that extreme success on the field,’ Kelce said on ‘The Stephen A. Smith Show’. ‘I’m excited for these next couple of games … to finish this season off.
‘I’ll re-evaluate it like I always do, [and] I’ll probably tell myself how much I love this thing, and I’ll come back next year.’
Kelce also says he’s felt nothing but fully supported by his pop star girlfriend, Taylor Swift.
There’s speculation that Kelce could retire this offseason, meaning it could be his last game
‘She’s fully encouraging me to enjoy playing this game,’ Kelce told Smith, adding, ‘I got all the support in the world to keep chasing these dreams.’
Kelce had a slow start to the campaign and it ended with one of his lowest production seasons in his career.
The 823 receiving yards he put up and the three touchdown catches he had were both the lowest he’s ever had since his rookie campaign.
It was this rocky start that led many NFL analysts to suggest that the 35-year old might be better off calling it a career after this season.
Other analysts blamed Kelce’s partying over the offseason, suggesting that the tight end’s jet-setting lifestyle was responsible for his slump.
But Kelce is known for his success in the playoffs and has the chance to erase the early-season narratives when the Chiefs host Houston on Saturday.
