NBC analyst Rodney Harrison has claimed that Travis Kelce’s underwhelming form at the beginning of the NFL season might be because he’s “juggling too many responsibilities.”
In the first three matches, Kelce has only managed eight catches on 12 targets for 69 yards and no touchdowns. During the Kansas City Chiefs’ 22-17 victory over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, the tight end only caught four passes for 30 yards.
Kelce’s relatively down form on the field was further emphasized by the lack of one of his biggest fans in the crowd. His girlfriend, Taylor Swift, was noticeably absent from the sea of spectators at Mercedes-Benz Stadium – leading viewers to speculate that there might be trouble in paradise after the NBC broadcast showed the 34-year-old looking downcast on the Chiefs sideline, reports the Mirror.
Addressing Kelce’s lackluster start to the season, NBC’s Harrison speculated that he might be juggling too many responsibilities both on and off the pitch. “He’s busy. He’s got a lot on his plate,” Harrison commented.
“You think about it. He’s doing a lot of different things. Media-wise, he’s playing football, he’s got other things going on. When you’re in that situation you’ve got to forget about everything else and focus 100 percent on football.
“That’s the main responsibility. Guys are making plays on him. Jesse Bates did a heck of a job on him tonight. He (Kelce) just doesn’t have the same speed. He’s a good player still but I don’t believe he’s a great, great player. ”
Meanwhile, Kelce’s mother has shared her insights on the cause of her son’s unusually poor start to the NFL season. The disappointing offensive performance is far from what the Chiefs and their fans have come to expect from Kelce, who has established himself as one of the best tight ends in the league over an illustrious 11-year NFL career.
Following yet another subpar performance, doubts about whether he can still perform at a high level are now at an all-time high.In response to the growing criticism towards Kelce, his mother Donna Kelce defended her son, suggesting that his struggles could be due to the enormous pressure he’s under. “It’s tough, it really is,” she confessed to PEOPLE at the premiere of Kelce’s FX series ‘Grotesquerie.’
“You know, I don’t think they realise the pressure that people are under, whether they’re athletes or professionals that are in front of the camera. And it’s just very difficult, there’s a lot of things going on behind the scenes,” Donna said.
“You don’t realise how many times people are trying to keep you from catching the ball, or trying to trip you up or hit you… so it’s kinda hard when you’ve got people that are in your face 24/7. ”
During an appearance on the New Heights Podcast last week, the NFL star expressed determination not to let his recent dip in form affect him. He elaborated on the podcast’s latest episode, explaining, “There’s a lot of things that have to go right for anyone to get the ball,” and mentioned, “These past two games it hasn’t gone that way for me. That’s football, man.”
