Like most NFL tight ends so far in 2024, Travis Kelce has gotten off to a slow start. Through the Kansas City Chiefs’ first three games, the superstar has just eight catches for 69 yards and no touchdowns.
Advertisement
And some of his fans – and fantasy managers – are not pleased with his lack of production.
During Kansas City’s Week 3 game against the Atlanta Falcons, a fan belittled Kelce from the stands. The heckler told Travis he was “sightseeing” across his first three appearances instead of “[playing] football.”
Don’t know how chief fans can be so shitty to Travis the most loyal player. Anyways y’all will miss him once he is gone. pic.twitter.com/LFxXJ6fsGG
— ashley (@anshley377383) September 26, 2024
While Kelce’s tormentor expressed his displeasure at the game, a number of Travis’s supporters had his back after hearing the comments.
This MIIIIIGHT make sense if the Chiefs were not 3-0 People talk about Swifties like we have issues, it’s these drunk fat men in the stands who can’t even run who are the REAL issue!!!
— Mrs. E (@Amboody) September 26, 2024
This is so disgusting if you are an actual fan you would encourage the player not shitting on him……
— mariyam ⸆⸉ ♡ (@lonelyswift13) September 27, 2024
Travis will try to get back on track this Sunday in a road matchup with the Los Angeles Chargers.
Travis’s struggles in the early season
This offseason, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes expressed a desire to push the ball downfield more frequently than they had the past two years. General manager Brett Veach heard their pleas and added two deep threats to the roster: wide receivers Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and Xavier Worthy.
Brown is unfortunately slated to miss the 2024 campaign due to a preseason injury, but Worthy and second-year-pro Rice have seemingly taken the reigns as Mahomes’ top weapons. Across three contests, Rice far and away paces Kansas City in targets (29), while Travis (12) and Worthy (11) sport almost identical amounts.
Perhaps Travis has finally reached his age cliff. He is less than two weeks away from his 35th birthday and failed to reach 1,000 receiving yards last season for the first time since 2015. It’s fair to wonder if Father Time has caught up to him.
At the same time, defenses are devoting more attention to Kelce this season than ever before. This commitment from opposing units is forcing Mahomes to win with his other weapons.
Thus far, that strategy is working: the Chiefs’ three victories have come by a combined 13 points.
However, things may not be as they seem. In the 2023 postseason, Travis posted 32 catches, 355 yards and three touchdowns. It’s plausible that Kansas City is simply preserving him for their attempted three-peat. But we won’t know for certain unless he can turn things around, or the playoff arrives.
