Travis Kelce is peeling back the curtain on his widely seen postgame moment Sunday with Patriots coach Bill Belichick.
When discussing the Chiefs’ 27-17 win over the Patriots on Wednesday’s installment of his “New Heights” podcast, Kansas City’s star tight end elaborated on what he told the eight-time Super Bowl winner, whose future in New England beyond the 2023 season has been heavily speculated.
“I just mentioned how much I respect him and how much it’s always the biggest challenge I go up against in the National Football League is going up against one of his defenses. I just wanted to make sure he heard that from my mouth. It’s been a pleasure going up against him all these years,” Kelce told his brother and podcast co-host, Eagles center Jason Kelce.
Belichick, 71, shook hands with Kelce, 34, after the game as the two engaged in an extended exchange.
“I was honestly just going up to him to pay respect over the 10 years that I’ve been going up against him and how much I appreciate the challenge every single time. Hats off to him for always being that great,” Kelce said Wednesday.
Kelce, who was pressed about Belichick and the coach’s future following the game, echoed a similar sentiment from Sunday, when he stated: “I got a feeling that guy has some football left in him.”
“They asked me and I’m just like, it might not be here, whatever the situation [is going on] here might not be it but I think that guy’s got some football left in him.”
Sunday’s loss to the Chiefs dropped the Patriots to a woeful 3-11.
This marks the second straight year they’ve missed the playoffs.
There has been much chatter about Belichick’s fate in New England, where he has served as the team’s head coach since 2000.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported earlier this month that Patriots owner Robert Kraft has “not come to a firm conclusion on what will happen next with his head-coaching situation, but the way New England finishes could go a long way in determining what’s next.”
The Patriots will travel to Denver on Sunday night.
As for the Chiefs, they’re looking to extend their win streak to two when they host the Raiders Monday on Christmas Day.
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