There was a time when the past two games would have eaten at Travis Kelce.
Four catches. 39 yards. Zero touchdowns. JAG (just a guy) numbers.
“I used to get really, really pissed off and almost lose my cool a lot of the time from not having that success knowing that I demand that out of myself and I just like to play the game to such a high level of accountability that it’s just tough for me to deal with being mediocre or having stats that represent that,” Kelce said on his and brother Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast Wednesday.
Now as a 34-year-old in his 12th season, Kelce is taking his invisible start to the 2024 season in stride amid the Chiefs’ 2-0 start.
The three-time Super Bowl champion admitted he “didn’t play my best” in a one-catch, 5-yard outing in Kansas City’s 26-25 home win over the Bengals on Sunday that marked the third-fewest receiving yards he’s tallied in his 12-year career.
Kelce has received only seven targets across the games, infuriating those fantasy football managers who invested premium picks in the veteran.
“For whatever reason, these past two games it hasn’t gone that way for me and that’s football, man,” Kelce said. “I’m not about to sit here and get frustrated about it.”
Kelce has set such a high standard for excellence at the tight end position that it’s jarring when he’s basically running cardio, but he’s been a non-factor to start the 2024 season, coming off a down 2023 season that featured his fewest receiving yards since 2015 (984) and fewest touchdowns since 2019 (five).
The nine-time Pro Bowler showed he can still be an elite player during the Chiefs’ run to the Super Bowl.
Kelce took a back seat to wide receivers Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy in Week 1, tallying just three catches on four targets for 34 yards in a win over the Ravens.
On Sunday, he saw just three targets while Rice again led the way.
Kelce could have had a bigger game, but quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw an interception while targeting him late in the first quarter and a penalty negated a 41-yard gain.
He now ranks 22nd among tight ends in receiving yards.
Kelce also failed to score on a carry from the 2-yard line, getting tackled a yard short of the end zone.
“I stopped caring about stats about four or five years ago and just went out there and played free and wanted to play for my guys and, sure enough, I think that’s the better mentality,” Kelce said. “You think about it more play by play and what your job is on that specific play and I think just moving forward, how can I be better in those moments? Am I not getting out of my route fast enough. Whatever the situation may be, it’s all play-specific anyways, but you’re always looking at the film, looking at the scheme and trying to perfect it more and more each week. Typically you see these games earlier on and you just keeping trying to get better and better and more accountable for the guys around you.”
Kelce isn’t the only one downplaying his turtle-speed start.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid recently said it’s “not that he’s slowing down” but instead faced two familiar defenses that focused on limiting his affect on the game.
Mahomes echoed those sentiments.
“They’re doing a great job of just kind of having two people for him pretty much the entire game,” Mahomes said Sunday. “That’s why you’ve seen guys like Rashee and Worthy – I mean, if you look at the first touchdown, I’m actually looking at Trav and the backside safety goes all the way across the field to help guard Travis and then you throw the ball down the sideline to Rashee and that’s kind of what they’ve been doing. Obviously, we’ve played two opponents that we’ve played a lot, so they have a plan on how they’re going to account for Travis. As the season goes on, he’s going to get his catches, he’s going to get his yards. The leader that he is – what’s special is he’s hyping everybody up, he’s keeping everybody motivated and that’s what you need out of your great players.”
The Chiefs (2-0) hit the road for the first time in the 2024 season Sunday night to battle the Falcons (1-1) before facing the reinvigorated Chargers (2-0) in Los Angeles in Week 4.
While the defense has played a large role in the Chiefs’ strong start, Kelce knows the offense needs to hold up its end of the bargain, him included.
“We gotta play better as an offense. The defense is playing their asses off, getting turnovers, finding a way to make opposing quarterbacks uncomfortable and they’re really making it hard for them to throw the ball downfield with the type of pressures we’re getting and how good our coverage is right now,” Kelce said. “We have to match that accountability on the offensive side to really become another Super Bowl-caliber team. I put that on me, it starts with the leaders and it starts with making sure you’re going with the right mentality. I didn’t play my best, it spreads if you don’t fix it. I’ve got to get that thing fixed, man.”