Remembering Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce’s best moments at Arrowhead Stadium ahead of what might be his last game there
If Week 17’s Christmas Day game is in fact Chiefs TE Travis Kelce’s last at Arrowhead Stadium, it’s the perfect time to reminisce.
While Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce won’t decide his football-playing future until March, there’s at least a possibility that Week 17’s game against the Denver Broncos on Christmas Day may be his last home game played at Arrowhead Stadium.
“I don’t know if it is or not,” Chiefs HC Andy Reid told reporters on Tuesday. “I haven’t talked to him (Travis Kelce). I think his numbers, personality, and the person, I think, speak for themselves. Phenomenal person (and) has been great for the community. He’s everything you want from a player representing an organization.”
“I hope like hell that’s not true,” Chiefs OC Matt Nagy said. “I just have so much respect. I’ve been fortunate enough, selfishly, to be with him for many years, and I’ve learned a lot from him. I will also say this. I think it’s fair for everybody to understand what Travis is going through, even in these last couple of games where we’re out of the playoffs, mathematically we’re out, and he’s out here every day at practice, leading, helping people out, fighting his ass off on game day. Has a great spirits with him on the sideline. And I think that should go to show a lot of guys on this team, these younger guys, why he’s playing this game, and why he’s so special. Personally, I don’t ever want to take that for granted. I know how much we love him as a city and as coaches, and I just hope that’s not true. I’d love to see him play more.”
“Wow, man, that’s sad, you know, to be able to be with my brother, man, and just be able to share the field with him,” Chiefs DT Chris Jones said about the prospect of Kelce retiring. “I hope it isn’t his last ride, but if it is, tip my hat off to him, a hell of a career.”
Just in case Kelce doesn’t return for year 14 and Week 17’s game against the Broncos does happen to be his Arrowhead Stadium send-off, let’s take some time to reflect on some of his most iconic moments in front of the Chiefs Kingdom.
Travis Kelce’s first touchdown at Arrowhead Stadium is one Chiefs fans won’t soon forget
After being selected in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft, Kelce would land on injured reserve during his rookie season due to a tibial plateau fracture. He wouldn’t get his first offensive opportunities until the 2014 NFL season, which was Andy Reid’s and Alex Smith’s second year in Kansas City.
His first touchdown in Arrowhead Stadium occurred in Week 4 of the 2014 NFL season on “Monday Night Football,” with the big bad New England Patriots coming to town. Tom Brady had such a bad performance during the game that he was benched. And Kelce? Well, he had a breakout performance with eight receptions for 93 yards and a score, letting the NFL world know just how special he was.
Travis Kelce’s first playoff win at Arrowhead Stadium was 25 years in the making
Kelce had a 1-3 record in the playoffs and had lost two games at Arrowhead Stadium before notching his first career playoff win on the home turf. The Chiefs faced Andrew Luck’s Colts in the AFC Divisional Round during the 2018 NFL season, in Patrick Mahomes ‘ first year as the team’s starting quarterback. Kansas City boasted the most explosive offense in the NFL, ranking first in the league in total yards per game (425.6) and points scored (565).
Kelce didn’t get into the endzone during the game, but he did catch 7-of-10 passes for 108 yards, marking his second career 100-yard receiving game in the postseason. It might not seem so special as he has nine more of those in the playoff games played since, but it kicked off an unmatched trend of postseason excellence from No. 87.
The Chiefs’ AFC Divisional Round comeback vs. the Texans wouldn’t have happened without Travis Kelce
If you look at the epic second quarter of the Chiefs’ comeback win against the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional Round en route to Super Bowl LIV, you’ll see one player’s name on there a whole lot.
In the span of seven minutes and 61 seconds, Kelce amassed 35 yards and three receiving touchdowns to give the team a 28-24 lead at halftime after a 24-point first-quarter deficit. Kelce and company would not be denied, giving Chiefs Kingdom the belief that anything was possible. The 51-31 win sent them to the AFC Championship Game, which we’ll touch on a bit later.
Byron Pringle catches a touchdown pass from Travis Kelce in the AFC wild-card game
Just last week, I found myself writing about the possibility of Kelce being the team’s emergency backup quarterback. I covered his not-so-great numbers during the NFL regular season, but I did neglect the fact that Kelce recorded a passing touchdown with Byron Pringle in the 2021-22 wild-card game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The only thing that would’ve made the play a bit more glorious is if Kelce had somehow come back to Patrick Mahomes in his read and thrown him a lob pass for a touchdown.
Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce combine for four touchdowns to defeat Chiefs’ rival Raiders
This game in Week 5 of the 2022 NFL season produced what was perhaps the wildest stat line in a single match during Kelce’s career. He caught 7-of-8 passes for 25 yards, which doesn’t sound all that great, but four of those receptions were touchdowns. The Raiders could not guard Kelce in the red zone, no matter what they tried.
It’s no surprise that Kelce set his career record for most receiving touchdowns in a single game.
Travis Kelce’s first AFC Championship Game win was where his iconic postseason punchline was born
It’s hard to forget this special moment when Kelce surprised Jim Nantz. The legendary broadcaster was trying to wrap things up. But Kelce had different plans in mind, chanting out some iconic lyrics that would soon become his postseason punchline, before they whisked everyone off the CBS sets and into the locker room to celebrate the win.
“I’ll tell you what, it has been seven years coming, baby,” Kelce began. “I’ve learned one thing since I’ve been here. YOU GOTTA FIGHT… FOR YOUR RIGHT… TO PARTY!”
Those words now have a new meaning in Chiefs lore; they’re not just a shoutout to the Beastie Boys, Mike D, MCA, and Ad Rock. They represent the grind, the hustle, and the passion that it takes for an NFL team to become a champion.
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