Stephen A. Smith has made Travis Kelce responsible for the NFL’s love for Taylor Swift. In September, the Kansas City Chiefs star’s brother Jason appeared to confirm Travis was romantically involved with the pop star – and while there has been no official confirmation it remains a huge part of the news cycle.
Rampant speculation began when it was reported that they were “hanging out” with one another in New York City. The start of story can be tracked to Kelce’s attendance at her show at his team’s Arrowhead Stadium in July where he went on to reveal on his “New Heights” podcast that he tried to give the singer a bracelet he made with his phone number on it.
Swift has since attended the Chiefs’ last two games against the Chicago Bears and the New York Jets and her appearance has had a significant impact. She is also bringing a new demographic of fans to the game and Kelce’s jersey sales have increased 400 percent.
Ticket prices have also soared, and the viewership has also increased. Smith believes Kelce is to blame for the frenzy that now surrounds the game of the reigning Super Bowl champions. “Travis Kelce, stop,” Smith said on ESPN’s “First Take” on Thursday. “Bro, you did this. Not the NFL. If the NFL got 27 million viewers, more power to ’em.
“What about Taylor Swift, she’s up there promoting her new album during the Super Bowl last year. You being in NFL games, that ain’t helping you? Don’t you got a movie coming out? Didn’t you make $6 billion at a concert? You know what you doing. She’s a marketing genius.”
The NFL is certainly doing all it can to maximize Swift being at games due to her romantic connection with one of the league’s best players. The New York Post reported that the NFL asked its four broadcasting networks — NBC, ESPN, FOX and CBS — if they would show ads for Swift’s new film without charge.
The movie, titled “Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour”, will be released in theaters on Oct. 13. The report stated ESPN and NBC followed through on the request, while FOX and CBS decided to reject it. ESPN showed the advert during their coverage of Sunday’s “NFL Countdown” and “Monday Night Countdown”, while NBC broadcast it on “Football Night in America” prior to the Chiefs’ 23-20 victory over the Jets at MetLife Stadium on Sunday night.
On Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast this week, he told his brother and Philadelphia Eagles center Jason that the felt things might be becoming excessive. “They are overdoing it a bit for sure, especially my situation,” Kelce said. “They’re just trying to have fun with it.”
ESPN analyst Smith, on the other hand, did not agree and claimed the buzz surrounding Kelce and Swift began when he revealed his attempt to give the music icon his number. “We didn’t know anything about Taylor Swift. She was going to her concert,” Smith said.
“She was doing her tour. She was in Kansas City. You wanted to meet up with her. She didn’t want to talk before or after the show to save her voice. And you let the world know you got a little bracelet made for her and you wanted to give her your phone number.
“C’mon bro. C’mon now. I mean listen, this is all in fun. Maybe it’s a bit excessive, people trying to capitalize off of it, attention-wise, monetizing it, I get it. The instigator in all of this was you, my brother. I ain’t mad at you now. This is not a bad decision. I mean, it has seemed to be very beneficial to you. More power to you. But you did it.”
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