While most NFL press conferences are about football, Travis Kelce has fielded quite a few questions about girlfriend Taylor Swift ahead of Super Bowl LVIII.
Kelce, 34, will hit the field in Las Vegas with the Kansas City Chiefs as they take on the San Francisco 49ers in Las Vegas on Sunday, February 11. While many of the questions posed to him at press conferences leading up to the big game were about Swift, not sports, the tight end said he isn’t trying to fight the attention.
“Coming up here is a once in a lifetime experience that I’ve been able to go through a few times,” Kelce explained when asked about keeping his composure at press events. “I guess I’m just comfortable in the atmosphere and the chaos that goes around us. Just gotta embrace it. The more you fight it, the more pissed off you might get or more negative you might start thinking. I’m a guy that likes to think about things a positive way and you know what? For a week, why not go through all this craziness and showcase my story, my family and everybody that has gotten me to this point.”
Scroll down to see all the times Kelce was directly asked about Swift at his pre-Super Bowl press conferences:
Friday, February 2
Reporter: For you in Baltimore [against the Ravens] on Sunday, what did it mean having [the chance] to be on the field with your parents to have your brother there, to obviously have that interaction with Taylor? What does it mean to you?
Kelce: It’s another memory in the journey that we get to cherish, man, and I’m fortunate that I got all the support I need off the field. And you know, it gives me a reason to play that much harder on the field, the people you just mentioned.
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Monday, February 5
Reporter 1: This is likely to be the most-watched Super Bowl of all time, partly because of your relationship with Taylor Swift. Does that put extra pressure on you?
Kelce: You can’t put anymore pressure than I put on myself. That’s just the heart of a competitor. She’s definitely brought a lot of new faces to the game and it’s been fun to experience that.
Reporter 1: Does all of the attention bother her or is she OK with that?
Kelce: She seems to be enjoying the games. She’s a part of Chiefs Kingdom right now. It’s fun seeing her enjoy the game of football, knowing that it’s kind of new to her life.
Reporter 1: Does she have a parking place for her private jet?
Kelce: I’ll have to ask.
Reporter 2: What did you say to Taylor [after breaking a Grammys record with] her fourth Album of the Year?
Kelce: She’s unbelievable. She’s rewriting the history books herself. I told her I’ll have to hold up my end of the bargain and come home with some hardware too. … Taylor has an unbelievable fanbase that follows her and supports her throughout her life and it’s been fun to kind of gather the Swifties in the Chiefs kingdom. It’s been cool to just experience all of that.
Reporter 2: Taylor also recently announced that she has a new album [titled The Tortured Poets Department] coming out, did you get to hear any of the music?
Kelce: I have heard some of it, yes, and it is unbelievable. I can’t wait for her to shake up the world when it finally drops.
Reporter 2: You have to give us something about the new album.
Kelce: Oh I can’t give you anything. [mimes locking his lips] I leave that to her.
Reporter 3: Tell us about last night, watching the Grammys.
Kelce: I was fortunate. We landed in Las Vegas just in time for me to turn it on on my phone and catch her winning her 13th award, announcing her new album and then, obviously, the big one at the end, the Album of the Year for the fourth time, setting records. It was pretty amazing.
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Reporter 3: Did you get a chance to talk to her?
Kelce: No, I haven’t. She had to jump right on a plane, so it’s been crazy.
Reporter 4: Taylor is in her history-making era, what era are you in?
Kelce: My Super Bowl era.
Reporter 5: What’s something you’ve learned from Taylor that’s helped you with your game on the field?
Kelce: That’s great question, man. I don’t know. She has an amazing love for life, so just making sure that I check my ego at the door and bring the right energy every single day.
Reporter 6: Kadarius Toney goes by the rap name Yung Joka. I’m just wondering, will Taylor get on an album with him to help him put his rap career on the map?
Kelce: I mean she’s been known to dabble in the rap world, I don’t know. we’ll have to see. I’ll see if Joka is up for it or not.
Reporter 7: What’s your favorite song by Taylor Swift?
Kelce: Right now, I’d probably say “Anti-Hero” just ’cause I hear it every single day.
Reporter 8: When you get that second ring, what are you going to do and does Taylor get one too because she was your big cheerleader this season?
Kelce: She is absolutely the No. 1 fan right now, and I love having her at every single game that she can make. And we’ll see. My focus is on trying to win this game. Everything afterwards would just fall in place. They tend to roll out the red carpet for you if you win the Super Bowl so I don’t think you got to plan this party.
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Tuesday, February 6
Though his press conference focused on sports, one reporter later brought up Swift by informing Kelce that he wouldn’t ask about the 14-time Grammy winner. “Now Travis, I’m not gonna ask you about your girl, man, that’s not my job,” a sportscaster at the opening night ceremony said.
Kelce quipped, “That’d be a first.”
Wednesday, February 7
Reporter 1: You congratulated Taylor after the Grammys, Has she given you a Super Bowl pep talk?
Kelce: No, she’s focused on entertaining the crowd out in — is it Singapore now? No, I think that’s in a few weeks. She’s out in Japan, Tokyo maybe. So, she’s just working on entertaining them, making sure she’s ready for her performances and everything. But the Super Bowl, we’ll worry about if she can make it.
Reporter 2: I know that you are focused on winning your own ring. Do you know there’s an actual bet that you guys get married at the Super Bowl? What do you say to that?
Kelce: These bets are crazy.
Reporter 3: Who’s getting a ring first, the 49ers or Taylor?
Kelce: I’m hoping I get this ring on Sunday, I know that.
Reporter 4: If Taylor were to write songs about you, what would she write about?
Kelce: That’s a question for Taylor.
Reporter 5: When you shot your shot with Taylor on your podcast, did you ever think in a million years all this would come from it?
Kelce: Never thought it would’ve landed. I didn’t even think it would land or I would get a response from her.
Reporter 5: How great is it [now]?
Kelce: We’re here and we’re all happy, I know that.
Reporter 6: What have you learned about yourself since the start of this whirlwind romance amid this heightened fame?
Kelce: Um, being worldwide is way different than just being famous in Kansas City.
Reporter 6: Is there anything that you still haven’t quite gotten a grasp on that you’re still getting used to?
Kelce: Nah, I got it all figured out, I think.
Thursday, February 8
Reporter 1: Why do think everyone is so fascinated with you [and Taylor]?
Kelce: The values that we stand for and who we are as people. We love to shine light on others, shine light around the people that help and support us. I feel like we both have just a love for life.
Reporter 2: I was wondering if you could help me complete this lyric here: “Karma is the guy on the …”
Kelce: Chiefs, definitely.
Reporter 2: Finish it! “Coming straight home to …”
Kelce: What’s the second question?
