INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Travis Kelce not only showed that rumors of his demise were a little exaggerated on Sunday, he became the Kansas City Chiefs’ career receptions leader.
Kelce had seven receptions for 89 yards as the Chiefs rallied for a 17-10 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. With his second catch, he passed Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez for the franchise mark.
Kelce declined to speak with reporters in the locker room after the game.
Even though Kelce was off to a slow start statistically during his first three games this season, making only eight catches for 69 yards, coach Andy Reid didn’t put any additional emphasis on Kelce needing a breakout game.
“I really don’t care what anybody thinks, to be honest with you,” Reid said. “I watch what the defense does and how they respect him, and so I take it off of that. And I watch Trav every day, so I get to see him in how he works, how he never wants to come out in practice, in the game. He’s all in all the time, so I don’t worry about all that.”
Kansas City’s wide receivers also showed their support when they wore custom Kelce T-shirts during pregame warmups.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who attributed Kelce’s slow start to the extra attention he was receiving from opposing defenses, also wasn’t losing much sleep over his favorite target’s early lack of receptions.
“I mean, the whole Kelce thing in general hasn’t been a worry to me,” Mahomes said. “I know whatever we need, he’s going to make plays. And that’s what he did today.”
The nine-time Pro Bowl tight end made a 38-yard reception on the third play of Kansas City’s opening drive to tie the record of 916 catches set by Gonzalez over 12 seasons from 1997 to 2008. Kelce then caught a 5-yard pass on the Chiefs’ fourth drive to break the record early in his own 12th season with the team. He now has 922 receptions.
“They played quite a little bit of zone out there, and Kelce did a nice job of just getting in windows,” Reid said. “When they did play man, he was able to do a nice job there. There wasn’t as much double-team as maybe he’s seen or settling in on him as much as he’s seen. He did very good.”
Taylor Swift wasn’t in attendance at SoFi Stadium to see the latest achievement by her boyfriend, who is fourth in NFL history for receptions by a tight end. Kelce trails Gonzalez — who finished with 1,325 catches after playing five seasons for Atlanta following his Chiefs career — along with Jason Witten and Antonio Gates.
The veteran might need to take an even bigger role in the champs’ offense after top receiver Rashee Rice injured his right knee in a collision with Mahomes during an interception return. The play started when Mahomes overthrew Kelce downfield, allowing Kristian Fulton to pick off the pass.
“With Rashee going out, you’ve got to put Kelce back in that situation where he can get high-volume catches,” Mahomes said. “The Chargers were taking away some of the outside stuff and leaving the middle of the field open.”
Kelce, who turns 35 on Saturday, is closing in on two additional Kansas City franchise records.
He has 74 touchdown receptions, trailing only Gonzalez’s 77. Kelce’s 77 total touchdowns are seven behind Priest Holmes’ Chiefs record of 84.
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AP Sports Writer Joe Reedy contributed to this report.
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