It’s no secret that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Parick Mahomes’ favorite target to get the ball to is tight end Travis Kelce. The Mahomes-Kelce question is almost as impossible to defend against as Tom Brady’s connection with Gronk during their playing days.
On Wednesday, Mahomes took to the podium and elaborated on entering his sixth season (since becoming a starter) with the all-pro tight end.
“I don’t know why, I just kind of understand what [Kelce] is going to do – some stuff that he isn’t supposed to do,” Mahomes said. “There are times in practice where we were thinking about making a call for that when we get that look, for him to run that route. He has a good understanding of the entire concept, he understands the coverages, takes a lot of reps, and I just try to develop that trust that wherever I see it one way, he is going to do it that way.”
Since 2018, Kelce has caught 518 passes for 6,539 yards and 49 touchdowns through 82 games with Mahomes. But the Super Bowl MVP says his connection with the 33-year-old tight end caught fire in the 2019 season.
“I think it was in that first Super Bowl run,” Mahomes recalled. “There were a couple of times throughout the games where I threw some balls that he adjusted his route, and I threw it before he even did it, just knowing him,” he explained. “It just took a couple of years of working with him and continuing to do stuff. Not only did I get a feel for how he runs routes, but he got a feel for how I was seeing stuff. Just that combination of stuff developed that connection where we can go off the radar screen and develop stuff that’s not necessarily called.”
Kelce finished the 2019 campaign with 97 receptions for 1,229 yards and five touchdowns as the Chiefs soared through the NFL to win the franchise’s second Super Bowl. Mahomes has relied on this tight end heavily over the following years and surely missed him in the 2023 season opener against Detroit when he was out with a knee injury.
Last week against the Bears, Mahomes and Kelce finally picked up where they left off as the Chiefs’ offense picked Chicago’s defense apart for 456 total yards to win 41-10. Although Kansas City has emphasized spreading the ball to their seven-plus different receivers, Kelce will always serve as Mahomes’ security blanket, which will continue to remain very difficult to defend against as the season goes on.
