NFL
The one thing that makes Travis Kelce different
His Kansas City Chiefs teammates cited one quality that sets him apart from the rest in the world of NFL.
The postseason transformation of Travis Kelce has become a running joke in recent years. Regardless of his regular season form - which has been patchy in both of the last two seasons - when it really maters ‘Playoff Trav’ has always come to the fore.
It’s partly the result of his vast experience, now a three-time Super Bowl winner. It could also be that he is elevated by the class of his Kansas City teammates, and the control exerted by head coach Andy Reid. But it’s almost certainly a feature of Kelce’s own character too, and a number of teammates have cited his relentless positivity as a key factor.
“He’s pumping us up every time we’re walking out on the field: ‘Let’s go boys, let’s go,’” Chiefs linebacker Leo Chenal said recently. “Every time somebody makes a play, he’ll call him out specifically or go on the side after a play: ‘That’s great, that’s great. Keep it going, keep it going.’"
Chenal is not the only one to see that side of Kelce. Former Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith played with Kelce at the start of his career and, even back then, was able to identify something unique in his character.
Smith explained: “I know people can boil football down to a boys' game, which it is. But when you get to the NFL, it’s hard. It’s stressful. The games mean so much. It’s rare to find people unaffected by all that stress. He was one of those guys, and by being who he is, he helped everyone around him.”
“He was always so comfortable in his own skin,” Smith continued. “That was great as a teammate because he made everybody else comfortable. He enjoys coming to work, and that’s infectious.”
The relentless success of this Chiefs team sees them gearing up for a seventh consecutive Conference final appearance, and maybe even a historic three-peat Super Bowl triumph. For all their on-field talent, that level of achievement also has a lot to do with character and the atmosphere around the team. During his 12 years with the team Kelce has been a major part in cultivating that environment.
“I think so,” Kelce said recently, when asked if former teammates enjoyed playing with him. “I hope so. That’s one of the things I like to pride myself on. I don’t know too many enemies I’ve come across in this building.”
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