The Kansas City Chiefs are undefeated through 3 weeks in the NFL season yet it is a bittersweet record for the reigning Super Bowl champions. This is because of Travis Kelce’ s dismal performance of 8 receptions for 69 yards in 3 games. While fans and analysts continue to scratch their heads over what has led to this decline in his production, the tight-end is not sweating it because there is just one thing that matters to him, which is winning.
In Wednesday’s press conference, Patrick Mahomes defended his tight end’s slow start by providing an insight into his mindset. The Chiefs and Mahomes intend to involve Kelce into the offense but the tight end understands that it is in the best interest of the team for the quarterback to target the other receivers on the roster.
I feel like I want to give him the ball more, whereas he’s just like, ‘I just want to win, man. I don’t care, I’ll run these routes and take guys with me so that other guys can get open. We understand he’s an important part of this offense, and we want to make sure that we’re still featuring him, but at the same time, if defenses are going to take away him, I’ll feed the ball to other guys and let them make plays.
Patrick Mahomes told the reporters
The tight end with seven consecutive 1,000-yard seasons is playing the role of a decoy so far this season. Opposing defenses understand that Kelce cannot be guarded by one man alone, so it is common to see him be double or triple-teamed in most instances. In this situation, if Patrick Mahomes chooses to throw to Travis Kelce, the likelihood of him succeeding at making a play would be less.
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are relying on their wide receivers to lead their offense
This is why the team is opting to give opportunities to other receivers such as Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy. The Chiefs are essentially compelling defenses to pick their poison. In case they opt to cover Rashee Rice effectively and double-team him, then Travis Kelce will be in a position to get himself free.
It is not rocket scientist to figure out what Kansas City is plotting to do but it surely would take one to figure out how to stop them irrespective of which route they opt for. Rashee Rice has proved to be a valuable asset and has been targeted the most by Patrick Mahomes in the first 3 games of the season. In the coming weeks, the Chiefs will look up to Xavier Worthy to increase his production and have a bigger role within the offense.
As for Travis Kelce, the tight end’s struggles remain a concern but Patrick Mahomes is not worried about his teammate.
I mean, what’s been great for me in my career is that he wants to make an impact in the game and he wants to make plays, but he wants to win at the end of the day…he’s good with just going out there and playing hard, blocking, doing whatever he can to impact the game.
Patrick Mahomes added
Despite the quarterback’s confidence in his teammate being comfortable with playing a secondary role in the offense, the Chiefs cannot achieve their true potential without Kelce in the driver’s seat of the offense.
To have Travis Kelce on the team and to use him for everything but receiving is similar to owning a Ferrari and driving it within speeds of 60 mph. It is not built to be used in that manner. The hope is for the tight end to get back to being himself. As the Chiefs gear up to face the Chargers, a team against whom Kelce has recorded over 1,223 yards and 8 touchdowns in his career, all eyes will be on him yet again.
