Travis Kelce calls Ravens kicker Justin Tucker ‘a f***ing d***’ for warming up at the Chiefs’ end of the field and jawing with Patrick Mahomes before AFC Championship – but claims HE is ‘being made out to be the bad guy’
Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker wasn’t just encroaching on the Kansas City Chiefs’ warmups before Sunday’s AFC Championship. As Travis Kelce told his brother Jason on this week’s episode of their New Heights podcast, the NFL legend was actually playing head games. ‘Don’t look at me as the bad guy,’ Travis told Jason, the Philadelphia Eagles center. ‘He was poking the bear.’
Prior to the Chiefs’ 17-10 victory over the Ravens, Kelce was seen furiously moving Tucker’s gear while the celebrated kicker was stretching at Kansas City’s end of the field just a few feet from Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes. NFL Network’s James Palmer caught the exchange on his cell phone and the footage quickly went viral. ‘I had multiple people text me at the end of the game, middle of the game, like: ”What’s Travis doing?”’ Jason said.
On their podcast, Travis pointed the finger at Tucker: ‘If you’re trying to go onto the other team’s designated area, you kind of stay out of their way. You don’t interfere with what they have going on… That’s the unwritten rule. If you want to be a f***ing d*** about it, you keep your helmet, and your football, and your f***ing kicking tee right where the quarterbacks are warming up. And they’re dropping back [to pass] eyes are looking left and they got a helmet down by their feet.’
Travis Kelce told Justin Tucker he needed to move because their QB Patrick Mahomes had to warm up. So Kelce kicked his ball away and threw his helmet. 😂 pic.twitter.com/pFF0DC1yA7
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) January 28, 2024
Patrick Mahomes warms up around the stretching Justin Tucker before Sunday’s game
Jason was quick to point out, ‘it’s actually kind of dangerous,’ while agreeing with his brother about the kicker. ‘Tucker is known for this,’ Jason said. ‘He’s a legendary kicker and he knows how to poke the buttons.’ Mahomes, too, has accused Tucker of regularly pulling this stunt.
‘I’ve had like seven years of doing that same warm-up routine and there’s only been, I think, like three occasions where there’s been a kicker that wasn’t necessarily moving out the way, or you thought you weren’t sharing the field in the right way,’ Mahomes told Kansas City sports radio host Carrington Harrison this week. ‘I mean, it was in Baltimore all three times. He does a little stuff, I think, to try to get under our skin.’
It’s not unusual for kickers to warm up on both sides of the field. Typically, in an effort to test themselves against the varying conditions of each end zone, specialists will attempt some practice kicks at both. But as Travis said, there’s an ‘unwritten rule’ that specialists should strive to avoid getting in the way of opposing players on their end of the field.
Some have speculated that Kelce’s furious reaction was a bit of a joke, but speaking on NFL Network earlier this week, Palmer strongly disagreed with that characterization. ‘I was there to witness this and I talked to a number of people afterward that were involved,’ Palmer said Tuesday. ‘There was nothing playful about this. Travis Kelce was lit. He was angry at Justin Tucker.’
Palmer went on to say that Mahomes was also irritated with Tucker, and the two ‘actually had words.’ Jason also made reference to a brief argument between Mahomes and Tucker on Wednesday’s podcast.
Marquez Valdes-Scantling was also seen kicking Tucker’s ball out of the way on Sunday
Travis said Tucker winked at him, and appeared to be prodding the Chiefs into some head games, but he and Mahomes weren’t having any of it. ‘Me and Pat, we’ve been having the same mentality for this game all week long,’ Travis told Jason. ‘It was, you got to go in there and have the right mindset. And we just weren’t in a joking mood. We were ready to get after it.’
Tucker has since defended himself to reporters following Baltimore’s season-ending defeat. ‘I saw Patrick there trying to warm up and get some dropbacks and he asked me, while I was on the ground stretching, if I could move my helmet,’ Tucker said. ‘I happily got up and I moved my helmet out of the way – at least I thought it was enough out of the way.
‘And then Travis comes over and he just kicks my stuff and he throws my helmet. ‘I thought it was all just some gamesmanship, you know, all in good fun, but they seemed to be taking it a little bit more seriously,’ Tucker continued. ‘I’m totally willing to let it all go, but I just wanted to explain that that’s just what I have done for 12 years and it’s not like I’m out there trying to be problematic.’
Jason Kelce (right) is seen hugging Travis after the Chiefs’ AFC title win over the Ravens
If it was gamesmanship on Kelce’s part, it appeared to work in his and Mahomes’ favor. The Chiefs quarterback finished 30 of 39 for 241 yards and a touchdown to Kelce, who had 11 receptions for 116 yards while passing Jerry Rice as the most prolific pass catcher in NFL playoff history. ‘It worked, because it got under your skin, but it worked in the wrong way because it was a record day for the Yeti,’ Jason said, referring to his brother’s nickname.
While Travis was quick to say Tucker is ‘arguably’ the greatest kicker in NFL history – something Jason agreed with – he still appears upset over the incident, even as his Chiefs are on their way to Super Bowl LVIII. ‘So Justin, sorry if we took it to a level that you didn’t think it’d get to, but if you’re gonna be a d***, I promise I can one up you every time.’
