The Kansas City Chiefs are officially out of the AFC playoff picture. It's the first time since 2014 that the Chiefs will not play a meaningful game in January, meaning that the vast majority of players on the roster will see their years end at the close of the regular season for the first time.
This unfamiliar territory is something only Travis Kelce can speak to, as the longest-tenured player on the team. For fans who thought the Chiefs might put up an uninspired performance in Weeks 16-18 with the door closed on the postseason, Kelce offered up some clarifying statements on his podcast.
The newest episode of New Heights dropped this week, with Kelce reflecting in great detail about the loss to the L.A. Chargers in Week 15 as well as Patrick Mahomes' ACL/LCL injury. But he went on to address what the team has left to play for with great passion and a focus on integrity.
"We've got three games left. I know we’re still talking about this game, but the integrity of who you are as a professional, as a player, you gotta love this s—t, man. Chiefs Kingdom, we’re gonna give you everything we’ve got. There’s no question about that. There’s only one way I do things. There’s only one way Coach Reid does things. And if we’re gonna go out there and play some football, we’re gonna do it the right way and keep trying to get these things fixed and end on the highest note that we can.
Travis Kelce delivered a clear message on integrity and why the Chiefs will play the final weeks like they still matter.
Kelce realizes that as the team's elder statesman and a future Hall of Fame player, the responsibility for setting that tone in uncharted waters is up to him. Even someone as experienced as Mahomes has always played as far as a conference championship.
"It’s kind of unfamiliar territory for the guys in the building. For the guys that have been there, I’m the only one that’s been on the team long enough to see us not make the playoffs or to play a game that you didn’t have a future."
As for his message to his teammates in the Chiefs locker room, Kelce has only one way he knows how to play and he's expecting them to do the same.
"It’s obviously f--ked up, but it’s a new feeling, so all I know is to go out there and play my ass off and show up and give my guys the best chance to win. I think that’s the mentality. There’s an integrity thing here that when you sign up for the gig, you’re living out your dreams, you’re living out a kid’s dream that never got a chance to do this, you’re playing this game to obviously win Super Bowls. At the end of the day, you’re playing in the NFL, and that’s a fucking blessing.
"It’s an honor. It’s an honor to feel the soreness after a game because you’re actually out there. You’re fucking doing it. No matter if you’re getting the fucking ball thrown to you. No matter if you’re blocking your tail off and you never see the pill. It’s an honor to be out there in a uniform playing for the guys around you, playing for your family, playing for the people back home that are watching you that have known you since you were a little kid dreaming about these moments being in the NFL."
If anyone doubts Kelce's excitement and energy at this late stage of his career, given that he's 36 years old, he put those to rest. "I’ll tell you what, if there’s a game to be had, baby, I’m going to go out there and love fuckin’ playing in it, no matter if it’s a game that’s in the playoffs or gets us in the playoffs or a game that seems like it doesn’t have any implications of that. That’s the integrity you gotta fucking go out there with."