September 27, 2023
The biggest story in the NFL last weekend was not football-related. It was Taylor Swift attending the Kansas City Chiefs game Sunday amid rumors that she is dating Chiefs star Travis Kelce.
Travis and his brother Jason, the Eagles center, discussed what they jokingly called "the elephant in the room" during the latest episode of their "New Heights" podcast, which was released Wednesday.
"We've been avoiding the subject out of respect for your personal life," Jason said. "But now we kind of have to talk about it."
How could they not? Swift joined Travis' family and friends in his suite at Arrowhead Stadium for the game. She was seen beside his mother, Donna, and celebrating Travis' touchdown with a chest bump. Then the Berks County-native left with Travis after the game and attended a team party.
"What's real is that, you know, it is my personal life, I want to respect both of our lives," Travis said. "She's not in the media as much as I am doing this show every single week and having fun during the NFL season on other guys' shows, like the ('Pat McAfee Show') and any other show I go on from here on out. Like you said on that Thursday night game, I'm enjoying life and I sure as hell enjoyed this weekend."
The rumored romance has given the Kelce brothers a wider audience that includes many Swifties. So the NFL stars fielded some questions from football newbies. They explained what downs and field goals are, and discussed whether tight end is a real position.
The NFL stars had fun answering the questions. However, they admitted that describing football terms that are second nature to them is more challenging than they anticipated.
One person asked how to watch football without having sports channels. After Jason named a few networks that broadcast NFL games, Travis chimed in, "Just go to your f****** search engine. Just go to your search engine. You'll figure all that out. If you really want to know, you'll find it."
Swift's attendance at the Chiefs game helped make it the most-watched NFL matchup of the weekend, with 24.3 million viewers. Ratings grew by 8% for the girls ages 12 to 17 years, ESPN reported. And jersey sales for Travis Kelce – already a popular player – have grown by 400%.
Even Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes joked after the game that he felt pressure to throw Travis a touchdown pass with the pop star in attendance.
"I think he wanted to get in the end zone just as much as all the Swifties wanted him to," Mahomes told reporters.
As the dating rumors have picked up steam, Travis told Jason that he has noticed paparazzi at his house. He pledged to keep his dating life private going forward, saying he intends to shift public conversations to sports.
"So everything moving forward, I think me talking about sports and saying, alright now, will have to be kind of where I keep it," Travis said.
The full podcast episode can be watched on YouTube or streamed on podcasting platforms.
