Travis Kelce’s Sunday lesson: ‘I can’t throw my flag, he can throw his’

Travis Kelce figured he would demonstrate to the official how to throw a penalty flag, so he removed the towel from his waistband and chucked it toward him.

And Kelce’s day was over.

“I knew when the ref took off his hat I was done,” Kelce said.

Kelce, who by the time he had tossed his towel had already received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, received another — the official who had tossed the flag used his cap for the second flag — and ejection.

He wasn’t around to see the Chiefs hang on to defeat the Jacksonville Jaguars 19-14 at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday, and he regretted it.

“I can’t do that to my teammates, to the (fan base), to myself,” Kelce said. “It was a terrible decision. You have to learn from it.”

Here’s what happened: The Chiefs led 16-7 early in the fourth quarter and had reached the Jaguars 12. On second-and-4, quarterback Nick Foles shot a pass to the back of the end zone, where Kelce appeared to have a step on Prince Amukamara.

Amukamara broke up the play, but Kelce believed not cleanly, arguing that Amukamara hooked him and pulled him away from the ball before it arrived.

“That’s a guaranteed touchdown if I get my hands on it,” Kelce said.

Kelce sat on the turf, his arms outstretched, looking for a call. He got up, mimicked the pulling of his jersey, waved his arm in disgust, and said something to earn an unsportsmanlike conduct flag.

That’s when he tossed his towel toward the official and called it a day.

Kelce jogged to the Chiefs bench, had a brief exchange with Coach Andy Reid, and headed up the ramp.

“I didn’t appreciate the way he handled that,” Reid said. “It’s been addressed.”

Both unsportsmanlike penalties were assessed. The Chiefs moved back 30 yards to the 42, and only a fine play call and execution — a 24-yard screen pass to Charcandrick West — got the them back in field goal range. Cairo Santos booted his fourth of the game to extend the lead.

But Kelce realized his temper could have been most costly.

“That’s where the frustration comes in,” Kelce said. “Close game, I’d been kind of quiet during the game. We finally get some momentum and we get it yanked away, and we don’t get the call for it.

“I just lost it.”

After leaving the locker room, Kelce posted on his Twitter account a photograph of the play taken by The Star’s John Sleezer, shot from behind the end zone, showing Amukamara’s on Kelce’s neck as the ball approached. In less than an hour the tweet had received more than 1,000 retweets and nearly 2,000 favorites.

He tweeted again later.

“I apologize to everyone that had to witness my actions on the field today... it was unprofessional and unsportsmanlike,” he wrote. “A missed call is just that... missed. No matter how much frustration builds on the field, the refs don't deserve that kind of response.”

Kelce believed he was right about the call. But he was wrong about his action.

“I can’t throw my flag at the ref,” Kelce said. “He can throw his all day long.”

This story was originally published November 6, 2016 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Travis Kelce’s Sunday lesson: ‘I can’t throw my flag, he can throw his’."