Travis KelseyOpening catch vs Houston Texas Saturday will tell you a lot about what Kansas City Chiefs They’ve done that with their offense over the past few weeks.
It’s not that Andy Reid is exactly doing something unrecognizable. He’s doing a lot of what he’s always done. To some extent, the major players are unrecognizable.
Reid W Patrick Mahomes He found production with the rookie receiver Xavier deserves it And even a tight end Noah Gray. But it’s not like Kelsey has completely disappeared. This is what made the divisional round so strange. Houston has often lost track of the greatest tight end in NFL history. You know: the guy who’s dating Taylor Swift. And the man who is among the most prolific players in postseason history? We all know him.
“It’s a playoff game,” Mahomes said after the game.
But it was as if the Texans forgot who he was.
That’s been on display since Kelsey’s first catch. He was wide open for a catch and run for 23 yards. All year, the Chiefs complained that Kelce was double-teamed. (Those claims weren’t entirely accurate, but that’s a whole different argument.) On this play, it was Worthy who got the double team. He was heading down the field and the safeties were bracketing him to prevent a big play. As Mahomes rolled to his right, the QB appeared to do something with his eyes to make it look like he was targeting Gray. So two Texans linebackers stepped up at once (apart from Kelce). Mahomes easily floated the ball to his favorite target for a big gain.
Six weeks ago, Kelsey wasn’t so outgoing.
Not until Worthy legitimizes himself. Not before Gray legitimizes himself.
“I think you have a diverse group of players that we’ve been able to take advantage of [Kelce]”And when we didn’t do that, teams were ganging up on him,” Reed said Monday. “It’s a good problem now because the players are healthy, we have options and they can’t just focus on him.”
Hollywood Brown healthy. Isiah Pacheco healthy. JuJu Smith-Schuster healthy. DeAndre Hopkins He joined the team in a mid-season trade. Crime has reliable options everywhere. But that wasn’t true for most of the season, as Kelce was, for weeks at a time, the best and only option. That’s when all the attention was on him.
“He did a good job with the opportunities he was given,” Reid said. “And I don’t think it’s his style of play that is diminished when everyone asks about his age or physical ability.”
Reed was referring to a season-long narrative that perhaps Kelce’s play was running back. At 35 years old, he is the age at which Father Time eats up agility and extreme speed. Plus, with all the recent jet-set vibes, Kelsey has been living a different lifestyle than in previous years. It may have affected his preparation for the season, but it doesn’t seem to have affected his mentality during the season.
“I also appreciate that at his age he goes out there every day and practices hard,” Reid said. “And if you try to take him out, he’ll get mad at you. I would say that’s something special for an older player.”
While it’s still fair to wonder if Kelce is still at his peak, there’s no doubt he’ll punish defenses that forget who he is. There was a prime example against the Texans where Kelce got the Chiefs into the red zone. Houston was in man defense and left a slot for the defender Miles Bryant To take care of Kelsey. If you are wondering: Who is Myles Bryant? Well, that’s the point. He is known to be the most responsible for… New England Patriots Defense for a few years. It’s not like the Chiefs are redrafting him — PFF ranks Bryant as the 108th best cornerback in 2024.
Suffice it to say: This is not the guy you want to come face to face with Kelsey.
Kelce took Bryant’s lunch money — along with an 18-yard reception that helped set up the tight end’s touchdown reception in the next third.
There were long stretches where Kelce couldn’t find the end zone. He had just three in the regular season. On his New Heights podcast, Kelce said it’s “very frustrating” that he and Mahomes “aren’t on the same page” when it comes to scoring. This was perhaps the team’s biggest problem in a season where the offense was in desperate need of Kelce’s help and wasn’t able to fully provide the star power we had previously seen from him.
That’s what made Kelce’s touchdown on Saturday the Chiefs’ most encouraging play. This Sunday in the Asian Championship match Bills He likely won’t fail to account for Kelce like the Texans did on their first reception. And I doubt they’d be silly enough to go head-to-head with a player of Bryant’s caliber near the red zone. The degree of difficulty was surprisingly low for Kelsey – until the landing. That’s when things got interesting.
Kansas City designed the play for exactly this scenario. Third and long. Area defense. (That tells you something about the Chiefs’ level of preparation.) Mahomes knew he wanted Kelce from the jump, but the QB told reporters the play took longer to develop, which meant patience and — with luck — longer than usual. Clean pocket. When the pressure arrived, Mahomes stepped forward and as he was falling to the ground, sent the ball into the area where he knew Kelce would open it up: directly behind the linebacker.
“Big players make big plays in big games, that’s how simple it is,” Mahomes said. “He’s one of those guys.”
The Chiefs have spent weeks showcasing their depth in pass players. Hey, look at D-Hop! But don’t forget Worthy’s speed as a runner and pass catcher! Hollywood can go either way too! And if you think you got it with these guys, we’ll run it down your throat with Pacheco and… Kareem Hunt!
Last weekend, it was all on Texans’ minds. And Kelsey beat them up.
Nobody envy Bills coach Sean McDermott and defensive coordinator Bobby Babich. They will spend the AFC Championship game juggling flaming daggers, which is what Reid has planned. He excels at making opponents’ lives complicated at the worst possible moment.
Before joining FOX Sports as an NFL reporter and columnist, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @HenrysMkina.
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