Travis Kelce has shot to global stardom since sparking a romance with Taylor Swift, but he’s still the same person he’s always been according to teammate Patrick Mahomes.
“Travis has always been Travis,” Mahomes, 28, told reporters on Wednesday, January 24, per NBC Sports’ Pro Football Talk. Mahomes noted that it’s been “cool” to watch his longtime pal remain grounded despite the extra attention. “He’s been himself the whole time. He’s still Travis Kelce. He’ll still walk through the stadium and treat everyone like they’re his best friend and he’s always going to be like that. It hasn’t been any different to me.”
While Kelce and Swift, both 34, have caused a media flurry with their relationship over the past few months, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has been a household name among football fans since being drafted into the NFL in 2013. “I’ve come to work every single day and lucky enough that I have a lot of great players around me and Travis is one of them,” Mahomes said of his teammate.
Even separate from his romance with Swift, Kelce has made a name for himself outside of football. Over the past few years, he has starred his own dating show, Catching Kelce, served as the face of the biopharmaceutical company Pfizer and achieved a lifelong dream of hosting Saturday Night Live.
While Mahomes told reporters on Wednesday that he was unable to make Kelce’s March 2023 SNL hosting debut because of a childhood friend’s bachelor party, the quarterback said it was “really cool” to watch Kelce on the late-night sketch series as he’s been a fan of the show for years.
“[Travis] knows all he skits from guys who have been in Saturday Night Live growing up and he’s always telling me about the ones from before I was even born,” Mahomes quipped. “And I’m like, ‘Trav I’m not the same age as you I don’t know what that is.’”
Mahomes added that it was “definitely a goal” of Kelce’s to appear on the NBC series, let alone host it, saying, “Hopefully down the line, he’ll be able to do more of that type of stuff after he’s done playing football.”
Kelce, for his part, recently expressed his excitement over expanding his career opportunities beyond his on-field talents.
“I’ve been fortunate to do a few things outside of the sports world that I’ve been enjoying doing, like getting on camera,” he explained during a January 11 press conference. “The SNL stuff kind of opened up a new happiness and a new career path for me.”
Despite being open to future possibilities in the entertainment industry, Kelce noted that it’s “funny” to even discuss life after the NFL because it’s “so much further down the road” for him right now.
“I have no reason to stop playing football,” Kelce said when asked if retirement is a current consideration. “I love it. We still have success.”
For now, Kelce is focused on helping his team get through the playoffs and defending his Super Bowl LVII championship. He and Mahomes led their team in a win against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, January 24, and will now face the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship next week. If victorious, they’ll once again compete to become Super Bowl champs.
