Patrick Mahomes reveals Chiefs had plan to get Travis Kelce to milestone on Sunday
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes knew he wouldn’t be playing in Sunday’s regular-season finale against the Chargers, but he made a case for a teammate to get some playing time.
Tight end Travis Kelce.
Mahomes was in Kelce’s ear in the hours leading up to the game at SoFi Stadium. That’s because Mahomes knew Kelce was just 16 yards shy of 1,000 for the season
Kelce instead rested and he missed a chance at an eighth straight 1,000-yard receiving season. Still, his seven consecutive seasons with 1,000 or more receiving yards in an NFL record and four more than any other tight end in league history (Greg Olsen had three).
While on KCSP (610 AM) on Tuesday, Mahomes talked about his push to get Kelce to suit up Sunday in the Chiefs’ 13-12 win over the Chargers.
“I was trying to force him to play. I was trying to make him go out there because I knew he was going to try not to play and he wanted it to be about the team and not about him,” Mahomes said. “And I was trying to force him all the way up to gametime and then he said no, that’s not who I am. I don’t want to play for those reasons. I want to get myself healthy and rested for the playoffs. ....
“A lot of guys would have done that and went out there and did it and there’s no slight towards them. But the type of teammate that Travis is, he couldn’t do that because he knew it wasn’t about him. It was about the team.”
Kelce instead embraced getting the rest and fans were happy he didn’t risk being injured.
Mahomes said the Chiefs had a plan in place to help Kelce get to 1,000 yards on Sunday while keeping him out of harm’s way. Well, as best as you can on a football field.
“We’d got some plays for him that we were gonna get him open where you stay away from contact and kind of get him in some spots where you catch the ball, get down and everything like that,” Mahomes said.
Mahomes respected Kelce’s decision.
“But I mean, that’s just type of a guy he is man. He’s not gonna go out there and play for those reasons,” Mahomes said. “And he wanted those guys to go out there with the mission of winning the football game which they did.
“I was proud of him. Obviously I would have been happier if he got it, but at the same time, I know that’s not who he is. I’m glad that he’s the leader on our team like that.”
