Kansas City Chiefs superstar Travis Kelce and Philadelphia fixture Jason Kelce are two of the larger-than-life forces that will be representing the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LVII.
The nonstop attention being paid to the Kelce duo ahead of this childhood dream of a collision course comes with good reason. It would honestly be pretty difficult for anyone to turn a blind eye to this bloodline of greatness as we head into Sunday’s game.
The prolific football-playing brothers are key cogs in the wheel for their respective teams, albeit in completely different ways.
One Kelce plays tight end and the other Kelce plays center.
So while the brothers hold completely different responsibilities on the offensive side of the ball, the stark commonality we can all probably agree on is their natural, engaging personalities.
Jason has been a beloved figure in Philly for a while now, but his widespread popularity seemed to leap over the moon after the Eagles handed Tom Brady and the New England Patriots a 41–33 loss in a thrilling Super Bowl LII. It was one of those unusual games where the circumstances — an unexpected charge led by fearless backup QB Nick Foles and a bunch of players in “underdog” masks — ended up having even some of the most savage of Eagles haters pulling in their favor.
Again, the opponent was the Patriots. Not exactly difficult at the time to pull for whoever was standing on the opposite side of the field.
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However, given that Jason Kelce plays center, even if he happens to be playing the game of his life it’s not typically going to land him in some extravagant highlight reel nor will his play resonate with fans in real-time during a broadcast. Only true football film room junkies would pick up on all the great things “Fat Batman” does without needing someone to point it out.
So it wasn’t exactly his Super Bowl performance that landed this charismatic treasure in the hearts of Eagles fans.
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Jason Kelce is a national treasure in Philadelphia
This is precisely where Jason’s magnetic personality comes in like a bolt of lightning, and where he greatly separates himself from the pack of your typical, everyday offensive lineman.
Following that epic victory over the despised Patriots, Kelce had the city of Philadelphia in the palm of his hand during the team’s Super Bowl parade after delivering a speech for the ages in an outfit we won’t soon forget.
The expletive-filled rant while clad in a bedazzled green and purple Mummers costume felt like Kelce was cutting one of the greatest wrestling promos of all time.
In his signature emphatic fashion, the four-time All-Pro proceeded to go down a lengthy list of coaches and teammates in a spirited effort to shower them with the proper praise he felt they so well deserved, though hadn’t quite gotten yet.
What’s crazy is there was talk of Kelce retiring at that time, mostly due to a slew of injuries piling up and perhaps so he could walk away on top. Amazingly enough, here we are five years removed from that infamous championship parade moment and Jason Kelce is not only back at the Super Bowl, but the 35-year-old has also been named to the 2022 All-Pro team.
All of this from a former walk-on linebacker at the University of Cincinnati who turned into a sixth-round pick by the Eagles in the 2011 NFL Draft. Just an unbelievable story and the exact type of underdog tale that Philadelphia sports fans routinely rally behind with great vigor.
As previously mentioned, brother Travis plays a far more glamorous position and sees the ball frequently. It certainly doesn’t hurt that he’s arguably the greatest tight end of all time and the quarterback throwing him the football is an out-of-this-world phenom named Patrick Mahomes.
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Travis Kelce is already a fixture in Kansas City Chiefs lore
Whether it’s been former Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith or Mahomes throwing the ball Kelce’s way, he’s been an exceptionally productive tight end ever since making his debut in 2014 after sitting out his rookie season due to knee surgery.
However, when Mahomes officially took over the reins in 2018, Kelce leveled up nearly instantaneously, catching a career-high 103 receptions and another career-high of 10 touchdowns.
Both of those impressive career milestones have since been eclipsed. Twice.
That’s just how ridiculous this tandem has proved to be and yet they somehow manage to touch new stars when the playoffs roll around.
Kelce’s postseason ledger, which equates to a full NFL season, is absolutely mind-blowing.
If his name weren’t included in the above stat line, there’s not a chance in the world that anyone being honest with themselves would think these numbers were produced by a tight end.
Throw in Kelce’s staunch devotion to a wild sense of fashion and Chiefs fans have themselves a living legend walking amongst them at Arrowhead Stadium, well on his way to the Hall of Fame.
Did we mention that Jason Kelce delivered a Super Bowl parade speech that felt like a wrestling promo? Because Travis Kelce delivered a Super Bowl parade speech that sincerely was a wrestling promo, complete with a WWE Championship belt to prove it:
It was only three years ago but it almost feels like this outrageous footage of Kelce channeling elements of “Macho Man” Randy Savage and Ric Flair while wearing an enormous fur coat has been forgotten way too quickly.
Between Jason and Travis, it’s as though we’re being treated to a cartoon show that’s sprung to life, with both brothers fulfilling their unique department of antics to successfully complete the colorful circle.
Naturally, we have Mrs. Kelce to thank for all of this.
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Donna Kelce’s meteoric rise to fame during Super Bowl week
Considering both of Donna Kelce’s sons have been under the spotlight for a number of years, with Travis and Jason being major contributors to championship teams, she has mostly been in the background and not someone cameras constantly zero in on during big games.
To put it succinctly, Donna Kelce’s presence has been the polar opposite of Steph Curry’s mother, Sonya.
That is, of course, until the “Kelce Bowl” was born, in turn making Mrs. Kelce the first mother to have her sons pitted against one another on Super Bowl Sunday.
With that, things have taken off to the point that there’s an official petition on change.org for “Mama Donna Kelce” to do the honorary Super Bowl coin toss. It currently has over 181,000 signatures.
Sadly, unconscionably boring NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell would never allow such a fun thing to happen.
As for who Donna will be rooting for come Super Bowl Sunday, Mrs. Kelce offered up a superb response, saying, “the offense.” But when pressed, it appears she’ll be leaning towards Jason thanks to him giving her the gift of grandchildren. Or as Donna said, “It’s always about the grands.”
Although in reality, as Travis aptly stated, “My mom can’t lose.” And he could not be more correct.
When you see that a mother of two professional football players in their mid-30s is making care packages of chocolate chip cookies for her sons to take to Arizona — labeled twice just in case — it’s difficult not to echo those very words by Travis.
No, Donna Kelce cannot lose.
So while there’s plenty to love about the immense talent and explosiveness the Eagles and Chiefs bring to the table for Super Bowl LVII, we’ll be rooting for Mrs. Kelce.