Andy Reid found himself at the center of a viral moment during Super Bowl LVIII, courtesy of an intense interaction with Travis Kelce. While Reid could brush it off with a laugh, his counterpart, Jason Kelce, wasn’t about to let his brother off the hook so easily.
Addressing the incident on their podcast, “New Heights,” presented by Wave Sports + Entertainment, Jason Kelce didn’t mince words: “You crossed the line. I think we can both agree on that. Let’s be honest, the yelling in his face, too, was over the top. I think there were better ways to handle this, retrospectively.”
The incident occurred after Isiah Pacheco’s fumble in the first half, with Travis Kelce visibly agitated, screaming in Reid’s face and inadvertently bumping him off balance.
This moment not only became the subject of memes following the Chiefs’ victory over the San Francisco 49ers but also drew criticism toward Travis Kelce, whose fame has grown alongside his relationship with Taylor Swift.
Acknowledging his misstep, Travis agreed with Jason’s assessment, admitting his actions were “definitely unacceptable.” Reflecting on the moment, he remarked, “I can’t get that fired up to the point where I’m bumping Coach and it’s getting him off balance and stuff. When he stumbled, I was just like, ‘Oh s–t,’ in my head.”
Despite the tension, Travis expressed deep respect and admiration for Reid, referring to himself as a “product” of the coach and asserting that he would retire if Reid were to leave the game.
He even conceded that he wouldn’t have blamed Reid for responding physically to the altercation, stating, “If he would have cold-cocked me in the face right there, I would have just eaten it. I would have been like: ‘Let’s f–king go.'”
Reid, for his part, managed to maintain levity regarding the incident, joking with reporters after the game that the interaction appeared worse on television than it was in reality.
Explaining the situation, Reid remarked, “He caught me off balance. I wasn’t watching. He was really coming over [and saying], ‘Just put me in, I’ll score. I’ll score.’ So, that’s really what it was. I love that. It’s not the first time. I appreciate him.”
In the end, the incident passed without major consequences, but it prompts speculation on whether the reaction would have been the same had the Chiefs not staged a comeback against the 49ers.
