Travis Kelce Happy To 'Stick It To The Super Bowl Champs'
By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston
FOXBORO (CBS) -- The New England Patriots hung a Super Bowl banner on Thursday night. The Kansas City Chiefs were not impressed.
Instead of standing in awe of their competition, the Chiefs fought back multiple times from deficits to end up winning 42-27 in front of a shocked Gillette Stadium.
It's the type of win that would make any team feel good, and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce admitted as much after the victory.
"All the critics and what they've been saying about [Chiefs receivers], and for them to come out here and stick it to the Super Bowl champs, man, it was a fun game," Kelce said.
When asked how much he and his teammates paid attention to all of the pregame fanfare surrounding the Super Bowl LI celebration, Kelce answered succinctly.
"We were the other team that won," he said. "That's about it."
As to why the Chiefs had success to the tune of a 537-yard outburst? Kelce said he suspected the Patriots lacked respect for quarterback Alex Smith and rookie running back Kareem Hunt.
"I'm not sure what it was. It might have been the lack of respect they had for Alex's arm, the lack of respect for our running back," Kelce said.
Kelce himself had a mostly quiet night in terms of catching the ball, making five receptions for 40 yards. Though he did make a key block to help spring Hunt for a 58-yard run late that allowed the Chiefs to ice the victory. He also picked up a 15-yard personal foul when he used the football to hit linebacker Kyle Van Noy in the groin.
Kelce is no stranger to some trash talk. He famously mimicked Raiders punter Marquette King's signature dance last year and relentlessly ripped a referee after a critical penalty cost the Chiefs a playoff game against the Steelers. He also mocked Tom Brady before the Patriots and Chiefs played in the 2014 playoffs.
Yet, unlike his previous trip to New England, Kelce was able to walk away from this one victorious.
