Shaquille O’Neal has a problem with Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid’s 2025 Super Bowl game plan.
The NBA legend appeared on Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast on Wednesday, June 4, where he told Travis, 35, that his team underused him in the big game.
“I have a question,” said O’Neal, 53. “How come they didn’t use you a lot in the Super Bowl? I know you’re f***ing pissed. I don’t wanna get you in trouble.”
Travis, who flirted with retirement early in the offseason, is back with the Chiefs, so there was no way he was going to bad-mouth his current coach in front of a live mic.
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“Nah, man. You already know we were trying to use all the pieces, man,” Travis diplomatically responded.
O’Neal, who won four NBA championships in his career and was NBA Finals MVP three times, wasn’t letting Travis off the hook that easily. (Travis, for his part, has won three Super Bowl rings with the Chiefs since joining the league in 2013).
“I need the pieces that helped us win the first f***ing Super Bowl, don’t be trying to do new s***,” O’Neal continued. “I don’t wanna get you in trouble, but I wasn’t happy about that.”
“I appreciate that,” Travis responded. “The Eagles were doing a pretty good job of bracketing me and s*** like that.”
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“I tell you what, you don’t have to talk, but I’m gonna talk for you,” O’Neal said. “Coach, he’s f***ing 6-foot-8. Throw him the goddamn ball. Single coverage, double coverage, at the goal line. Alley-oop, that’s the play you call.”
That’s when Travis, who is actually listed at 6-foot-5, finally relented.
“Alley-oop. I’m telling you, I’m going to Coach Reid with that one right now,” he said. “Wait til you see this year, baby. I’m coming back with a little bit of Shaq, f***ing pissed off and ready to rock and roll.”
Travis has plenty to prove in 2025. Coming off a down year by his standards and well past the typical expiration date of an NFL player, he is out to prove he can still compete at the highest level.
“I love playing, I still feel like I can play at a high level,” he said on a March episode of “New Heights” after he announced his return. “And possibly at a higher level than I did last year, I don’t think it was my best outing. I let my guys down in a lot more moments than I helped them, especially if you look at my track record and how I’ve been in years past. I just, you know, I wanna give it a good run.”
