UPDATE: Travis Kelce has been seen running before the game and reporter Tracy Wolfson stated that Kelce told her he wouldn’t miss the game. Good news for Chiefs Kingdom!
All week long, the rallying cry emanating from the Bengals’ faithful involved stopping Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce at all costs.
Despite Jacksonville’s best defensive efforts last week, the nearly-unstoppable tight end still had a historic game, helping to carry Chad Henne down the field on a 98-yard drive and racking up 14 catches for 98 yards and two touchdowns.
He’s been a crucial chess piece for Patrick Mahomes’ offense (and a security blanket) his entire career. But if he’s going to have a repeat performance Sunday evening in the AFC Title Game, he’s going to have to overcome an unexpected obstacle.
According to FOX’s Jay Glazer on the pregame show before Eagles-49ers, Kelce came up lame just before the end of practice on Friday, suffering a back injury that very well could knock him out for the all-important tilt to come at Arrowhead later this evening.
He couldn’t possibly miss the game … right? Per Glazer, it’ll come down to the wire — and probably down to Kelce’s pain tolerance.
FOX: There is real danger #Chiefs TE Travis Kelce misses the #Bengals game.
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) January 29, 2023
The team first needs to "see him run" before knowing if he'll play.
He's a game-time decision. pic.twitter.com/j2jhyKWK0z
Travis Kelce injury update: Will Chiefs star miss AFC Championship Game?
Kelce experienced back spasms in Friday’s practice and is officially listed as questionable, though he’s currently expected to play. That said, it’s concerning that the team would like hard evidence from Sunday’s warmups before giving him the rubber stamp of approval.
If Kelce is, for some reason, unable to gut it out, the Bengals’ defense will key in on stopping Isiah Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon in the backfield, further shutting down an explosive offense that’s already being run by a hobbled Patrick Mahomes.
This means two of the most important Chiefs in Sunday’s battle will be gritting their teeth and competing with the Super Bowl on the line — and, again, that’s the best-case scenario.
Hopefully, Kelce and Mahomes can both approximate 100% and defy the odds after a heavily-scrutinized week of practice.
What AFC Championship means for legacies of Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes
The two signal callers for each team stand to significantly add to each of their legacies with a win.