Sports radio host Mike Francesa has questioned how dedicated Travis Kelce is to football while he’s ‘prancing around the globe’ with girlfriend Taylor Swift.
Kelce’s future in the NFL is under the spotlight following his latest below-par display for the Kansas City Chiefs in their win at the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night.
After Swift missed one of his games for the first time this season, the Chiefs tight end failed to make an impact on proceedings once again, registering just four catches for 30 yards at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
NFL analysts and fans are adamant that he is now hurtling towards retirement at the age of 34, including Francesa.
During the latest instalment of his ‘Mike Francesa Podcast’, the American radio figure doubted Kelce’s dedication to football amid his romance with Swift, describing his life dating the popstar as one big ‘photo op’.
‘As an organization and as a coach, you would have to question how dedicated Kelce is to the sport right now,’ Francesa said. ‘He has a lot going on in his life. His life has taken a radical change.
‘You see him in commercials, you see him in photo ops, you see him now very conscious of how he’s dressed… and where the paparazzi are and everything else.
‘It changed his life. And you wonder, where does football and where does football preparation enter into that?’
He later added: ‘Clearly at this stage of his career, you wonder where he is in his dedication, in his preparation, because his performance has fallen off dramatically. And it’s not just, “oh the Chiefs are going away from Kelce.” It’s more than that.
‘It’s extremely human. His life has changed. He’s now prancing around the globe with one of the most famous people in the world. His life is a photo op.’
Kelce was caught by TV cameras looking particularly miserable during the Chiefs’ win over the Falcons on Sunday night in a clip which went viral.
In three games this season, he has just eight catches for a total of 69 yards and zero touchdowns, going down as one of his worst ever starts to an NFL season.
After his first three games in 2023, Kelce had recorded 17 receptions for 152 yards and two touchdowns.
NBC’s lead analyst Cris Collinsworth admitted he was ‘flabbergasted’ by his latest absent performance on Sunday night, having also watched him struggle in week one against the Baltimore Ravens.
Collinsworth said on commentary: ‘I’m just flabbergasted. I mean, one game, big deal. Two games, alright.
‘This is the third game now where we have not seen the magic of (Patrick) Mahomes and Kelce, and I can’t really explain that one.’
Rodney Harrison, another NBC analyst, blamed Kelce’s latest lackluster performance on his other commitments.
He said: ‘He’s busy. He’s got a lot on his plate. You think about it. He’s doing a lot of different things. Media-wise, he’s playing football, he’s got other things going on.
‘When you’re in that situation you’ve got to forget about everything else and focus 100 per cent on football. That’s the main responsibility.
‘Guys are making plays on him. Jesse Bates did a heck of a job on him tonight.
‘He (Kelce) just doesn’t have the same speed. He’s a good player still but I don’t believe he’s a great, great player.’
