Taylor Swift's influence is clear as Travis Kelce handed post-game prize

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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes accepted the bracelet on behalf on his tight end teammate Travis Kelce
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes accepted the bracelet on behalf on his tight end teammate Travis Kelce

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes had the honour of delivering tight end Travis Kelce a Taylor Swift -inspired gift after leading the reigning Super Bowl champions to a 19-8 win over the Denver Broncos on Thursday night.

Swift was again the talk of Arrowhead Stadium after watching the game from Kelce's suite - the third time in the last four weeks she has watched her rumoured new boyfriend. The singer-songwriter chatted with his father, Ed, for the first time publicly during the game.

Kelce's mother, Donna, was also in attendance, much like at the Chicago Bears game last month when Swift made her Arrowhead debut as a fan. As too was Mahomes' wife, Brittany. She and Swift embraced during the game as Kelce and Mahomes combined down on the field.

READ MORE: Taylor Swift attends NFL game to watch Travis Kelce for third time at Chiefs vs Broncos

Afterwards, the Chiefs quarterback appeared on Prime Video's post-game show "TNF Nightcap". But before any questions, legendary Chiefs player-turned-pundit Tony Gonzalez gave Mahomes one last play to complete.

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Holding a bracelet, the Amazon analyst delivered the task while handing it to the reigning MVP. "My daughter, she made this," he explained. "I just wanted to give you something."

Mahomes picked up the bracelet, made of red-and-yellow Chiefs-coloured beads, before reading what is on it. "Tra-Tay," he exclaimed. Gonzalez then repeated the phrase, combining the first three letters of Kelce and Swift's first names before insinuating Mahomes should pass it on to his teammate. The quarterback got the message, looking around and asking: "Where's Travis?"

Taylor Swift's influence is clear as Travis Kelce handed post-game prizeGonzalez gave Mahomes the bracelet live on air

Mahomes saw the funny side before Gonzalez tried to justify his actions in the face of mockery from the rest of the punditry team. "I'm tryna get it to catch on," he added. "Tra-Tay. Nobody's buying in on it up here."

The host, Charissa Thompson, then jumped in to save Gonzalez. "Tony, the only reason you can do that is because your name is on the ring of honour up here, so you're allowed to do that," she said, pointing to the empty stadium behind them.

Kelce was well-deserving of the gift following a season-best performance against the Broncos. The tight end went for 124 yards on 9/9 receptions. After shaking off an ankle sprain that had him questionable to play, Kelce got off to a fast start, amassing 109 of his yards in the first half alone.

Taylor Swift's influence is clear as Travis Kelce handed post-game prize

It was his first time racking up 100+ yards before halftime since 2016. His 124 total yardage is almost double his previous highest tally of 69 this season. Notably, he hit that mark the last time Swift was watching at Arrowhead against the Bears.

Kelce and Mahomes combined as well as they have all season, with the quarterback totalling 306 yards, one touchdown and one interception, completing 30 of his 40 passes. His yardage was also a season-high. Thursday's effort topped the previous best mark from Week Two at the Jacksonville Jaguars by a single yard.

It seems Swift is providing good luck for both Kelce and Mahomes. The Chiefs are now 3-0 with her watching, and 5-1 for the season.

Matthew Abbott

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