From Michael Jordan to Tom Brady, sporting greats practice with the same burning intensity as they play.
Travis Kelce is no different and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end was forced to apologize after a training camp scuffle with a teammate in July 2023.
The All-Pro, who is currently teaching the tricks of the trade at Tight End University, caught a touchdown from Patrick Mahomes at training camp.
Second-year linebacker Jack Cochrane tried to punch the ball loose and only succeeded in pushing the superstar’s buttons.
Kelce punched his teammate defensive rival in the helmet — an act that would make every head coach wince — and the duo shoved each other until cornerback Trent McDuffie stepped in to pull them apart.
Such incidents are common as players prepare for the brutal NFL season and no harm was done.
But Kelce still felt the need to apologize in his position as a senior player.
“Gotta be a better teammate gotta be a better leader… plain and simple,” he posted on X.
Mahomes didn’t see any issues with the incident, suggesting that it showed the Chiefs were not complacent as they prepared to defend the Super Bowl trophy then won a few months earlier.
“I think we all have it. We have a lot of guys out here that are super competitive, but it’s about just doing it the right way,” he said. “Trav (Travis Kelce) punching the guy, not necessarily the way you want to do it, but you love the fire. You love the fire on both sides of the ball.”
“Trying to finish to the last second, but that’s just the type of guys we are.
“We’re going to compete, we’re going to argue on the football field, and then we’re going to love each other in the locker room.
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GettyMahomes and Kelce are locked in for 2025 after a chastening defeat[/caption]“We have a lot of dudes that are super competitive on this team.”
It clearly worked, Kansas City beat the San Francisco 49ers to secure back-to-back triumphs and set up a shot at an unprecedented three-peat.
That, of course, fell by the wayside as the Philadelphia Eagles overpowered the Chiefs in February’s season finale.
The Chiefs will have the band back together for another tilt this year.
Cochraine, who arrived as a free agent in 2022 and is largely deployed on special teams, signed a one-year extension worth $2.1million in April.
Kelce pondered retiring after the loss to the Eagles but has decided to play out the final year of his contract.
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According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, the Chiefs will see a slimmer Kelce in training camp.
“He’s told people close to him that he’s lost about 25lbs this offseason,” the reporter said.
“Played a little bit heavier in 2024, sort of a thing. He vowed to change it, and he has.
“This could be the Last Dance. Mid-30s, still a productive player, they want to go to him on third down, but declining a little bit. He’s trying to be slimmer and has gone hardcore this offseason to make it work.”
Kelce has since disputed the claims, saying: “First of all, I never said that. Don’t believe all you read on the internet, guys, alright.
“I’m down some weight, yeah, from the end of the season last year. Each year is different man. You got to rebuild it. This year, got some time to really focus on some form running and some things early on in the offseason that I just didn’t have time for last year. Certainly, feeling good and I think it will pay off.”
Kelce is determined to ensure 2024 is not how he will be remembered.
“I have a bad taste in my mouth in how I ended the year and how well I was playing and how accountable I was for the people around me. I don’t want to leave that life yet,” Travis told his brother Jason on their New Heights Podcast.
“I feel like there is a responsibility in me to play out the contract I initially signed to give Kansas City and the Chiefs organisation everything I’ve got, and that’s what I’m going to do.
“Even when it got tough last year on the body, or when it got tough after the Super Bowl — at your all-time low — there’s something in a motivating factor, that I can do this.
“I pulled the trigger as soon as I had that feeling.”
Kelce has hit back at claims he dropped 25 pounds for 2025GettyAnd according to Mahomes, Kelce is ready to go.
“If this is the last ride, you would never know,” he said last month.
“The way he’s talking about football, the way he’s talking about working and trying to be even better this year than last year.
“He doesn’t seem like a guy on his last ride, that’s tired of the job.”
Kelce doesn’t sound like he needs any extra motivation but one of his teammates getting under his skin in July might be just what the doctor ordered.
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