Chiefs’ Travis Kelce is looking for small role on U.S. Olympic flag football team
Darrell Doucette III may not be a household name, but chances are you’ve read some of the things he’s said about football.
Doucette is quarterback of the U.S. flag football team and he told TMZ last year that he compares favorably with Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Very favorably.
“At the end of the day, I feel like I’m better than Patrick Mahomes because of my IQ of the game,” Doucette said.
That comment went viral, thanks in part to Mahomes’ reaction to Doucette’s claim.
Doucette made headlines again when he told the Washington Post that Team USA doesn’t need NFL players when flag football is played in the 2028 Olympics. That came after NFL owners last week approved letting their players take part in the Olympic Games.
“This is a sport that we’ve played for a long time, and we feel like we are the best at it and we don’t need other guys,” Doucette told Adam Kilgore. “But we all have one goal in mind, and that’s to represent our country. We’re definitely open to all competition. If those guys come in and ball out and they’re better than us, hats off to them. Go win that gold medal for our country.”
On the latest episode of the New Heights podcast, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and his brother, Jason, the former Eagles center discussed Doucette’s comments.
Jason Kelce read just the first part of what Doucette told the Post about not needing NFL players on Team USA.
That didn’t sit well with Travis Kelce.
“Is this guy afraid of competition?” he said. “Just have a tryout and the best players make the team.”
Kelce added: “He’s just boxing out other people from joining the sport because they haven’t played this specific style of football?”
That full quote from Doucette made it clear he is open to the NFL players having a chance to show the flag-football guys they can do it better.
Jason Kelce suggested an Olympic play-in game.
“I really do think it’d be cool if we ... just have a team of flag football NFL players play these guys and see if they can win,” Jason Kelce said. “May the best team win.”
The Kelce brothers admitted they’re unfamiliar with flag-football rules, but they believe NFL players have a key advantage.
“The problem is,” Jason Kelce said, “I don’t know flag football that much, and I don’t know what skills you want, but I feel like speed is usually pretty good ...”
“And the NFL has speed,” Travis Kelce interjected. “Has a lot of it.”
Travis Kelce did give a tip of the cap to Doucette.
“We got some guys that can do some crazy stuff with the ball in their hands, man,” he said. “Even watching Darrell, he looks good. Even his highlights are epic.”
Coach Travis Kelce
Hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky was a guest on the podcast and he also spoke about the Olympics.
“I’ve tried everything in hockey,” Gretzky said. “I was a player. I was fortunate to run Team Canada in 2002 and we won a gold medal in Salt Lake City. It’s one of the great thrills of my life. I played in the Olympics in 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Unfortunately, we didn’t win, but it was such a great experience. And staying in the Olympic village, we had so much fun being with all the other athletes: curling, figure skating. It was like going back to high school.
“So my point is: If you get asked to be on the flag football team, do it. You’re going to love it.”
The Kelce brothers laughed, but Travis Kelce is interested in having a hand in the Olympics in some fashion.
“Even if I’m just like assistant coach or something,” he said, “I gotta get in there somehow.”
Kelce will be 38 years old during the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles, so perhaps his best path to Summer Games is via coaching. And Coach Kelce has a nice ring to it.
