As not too long ago as earlier this fall, some members of the NFL community suggested that Kansas Metropolis Chiefs star tight finish Travis Kelce was distracted and never totally dedicated to the trigger amid his gradual begin to the season and his much-publicized relationship with leisure celebrity Taylor Swift.
Throughout a current look on the “This Is Soccer” podcast, former Chiefs offensive lineman Kyle Long touched upon how Kelce spends parts of practices by himself engaged on routes forward of video games.
“He would stroll via, generally I’d see him over there together with his eyes closed, at perhaps 1 / 4 pace, going via his routes, getting completely different conditions for a Y selection route, working via his footwork,” Lengthy mentioned about Kelce, as shared by Tyler Lauletta of Sports activities Illustrated. “He takes that portion of the psychological recreation and pairs it with approach. He takes that, and he brings it again to the stay durations, and also you watch him work these things. He incrementally ramps it up till Sunday, and what we see on Sunday is a man who makes it look simple time and time once more.”
Takes about Kelce’s work ethic hovered over the Chiefs all through the 2023 season as Swift turned a fixture at video games. He then silenced any criticisms by recording postseason highs of 32 receptions, 355 receiving yards and three landing grabs (tied with Jake Ferguson of the Dallas Cowboys) throughout 4 playoff video games en path to serving to Kansas Metropolis win Tremendous Bowl LVIII.
ESPN stats present Kelce led the 2024 Chiefs for the common season with 97 receptions, 133 targets and 823 receiving yards. Nonetheless, the actual fact he scored solely three touchdowns had some questioning forward of this previous weekend’s divisional-round recreation versus the Houston Texans if he was not the dominant pressure he was in his prime.
Kelce appeared to reply such questions when he tallied seven catches for 117 yards and a rating in a 23-14 win over Houston.
For a bit produced by ESPN’s Adam Teicher that was revealed on Tuesday, former Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith detailed why head coach Andy Reid offers Kelce “a much bigger leash on route working” than another participant.
“[Reid] empowered Travis to do this, however he earned it. He studied and put in his time and he earned it,” Smith defined. “Take a look at how artful he is all the time been. That solely comes with preparation and work. Among the stuff he does seems backyard-, recess-type stuff, but it surely’s not. There was a technique to the insanity. The one means Travis is the participant he’s is as a result of he understands all of the nuances.”
Teicher famous how present Chiefs linebacker Drue Tranquill mentioned he is routinely quizzed by Kelce throughout practices “about coverages and what he may need seen that led him to defend a specific route a sure means.”
In the meantime, Kansas Metropolis beginning quarterback Patrick Mahomes indicated Kelce is usually noticed on the Chiefs’ follow facility throughout offseasons although he has embraced quite a few off-the-field business opportunities at this stage of his life.
As of Tuesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Chiefs as 1.5-point favorites for the upcoming AFC Championship Recreation versus the Buffalo Payments held at Kansas Metropolis’s Arrowhead Stadium. It actually seems like Kelce might be prepared for regardless of the Payments throw at him this coming Sunday.
