The Kansas City Chiefs aren’t letting their No. 1 seed ranking in the AFC get to their heads — even with a possible back-to-back-to-back Super Bowl win on the line.
“I haven’t heard anybody talk about anything ‘three-peat’ [or] anything like that,” tight end Travis Kelce, one of the team’s playoff captains, said in a preview for his upcoming ESPN interview with Chris Berman. “We’re focused on the Houston Texans right now.”
The Chiefs, who are ranked No. 1 in the AFC conference, battle the Texans in a Saturday, January 18, divisional playoff game. The winner advances to the conference championship against either the Buffalo Bills or the Baltimore Ravens. Of course, the AFC champ will secure a place in the Super Bowl against the NFC’s own titleholder.
“Anybody can get beat in the playoffs if you don’t come in with the right mentality and the right mindset dating back to training camp and throughout the season,” Kelce, 35, explained ahead of Saturday’s football game. “We have such a veteran team. We have so many leaders in so many different ways. Guys step up and guys just understand the task at hand.”
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If the Chiefs win the Super Bowl next month, they will become the first NFL team to win the championship three times in a row. Kelce, in particular, was signed with the Missouri team when they earned the Lombardi trophy in 2020, 2023 and 2024, respectively. (The Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in 2020 and 2023, and the Philadelphia Eagles in 2023.)
The 2024 big game was especially special for Kelce. In addition to winning the trophy, he was able to celebrate the moment with a sideline kiss from girlfriend Taylor Swift, whom he started dating in 2023. The pop star, 35, has since become a staple at his football games and is expected to make an appearance on Saturday.
“You know it, baby,” Kelce teased her attendance during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show earlier this week. “You know it’s playoff football, man. … I’m feeling fired up. I’m ‘feeling 22’ [like Swift’s song] all over again, baby. Let’s go!”
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Days later, Kelce gushed about his “very strong relationship” with Swift and having her game day support. (She often rocks up to KC’s Arrowhead Stadium decked out in team gear and colors, in addition to custom jewelry honoring Kelce’s 87 jersey number.)
“Me and Taylor are happy and I couldn’t be happier to have that confidence and that comfort off the field and all the support I could ever ask for in the stadium,” Kelce said on the Wednesday, January 15, episode of the Stephen A. Smith Show. “She loves coming to Arrowhead and coming to the games and cheering for me, so I got all the support in the world to keep chasing these dreams.”
