Travis Kelce reacts to stats he plays better with Taylor Swift in the crowd

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Travis Kelce might want to ask Taylor Swift to postpone her upcoming South American tour to ensure she’s in the stands for the remainder of the NFL season.

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That’s because, according to stats compiled by CBS, the 34-year-old Kansas City Chiefs tight end plays better when she’s in the crowd.

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“Taylor was in attendance and it’s turning out it was good she was in attendance because they put your stats up — when she’s at the game, when she is not at the game. I don’t know if you’re aware of this,” Kelce’s brother Jason said this week on their New Heights podcast.

“How could I not be aware of this?” Kelce replied, before Jason went on.

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“When T. Swift is at the game, you’re averaging 99 yards. And when you’re left with only your friends and remaining family there, you are at 46.5 yards a game.”

Swift, whom Kelce has been romantically linked to, has attended four of Kansas City’s games so far this year.

“It’s hard for me to wrap my head around that sentence,” Kelce responded.

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Jason continued, “Not only is social media noticing it, it appears that Big Red [Kansas City coach Andy Reid] is noticing it, because he weighed in. In his postgame press conference, he was asked about your big game and his response was, ‘Kelce keeps getting better with time. Taylor can stay around all she wants.’”

Breaking into a grin, Kelce replied, “Listen, when you’re getting Big Red’s approval and blessings, you know you’re doing something right.”

Earlier this week, in conversation with NBC Sports’ Peter King, Jason, 35, said that his brother’s burgeoning relationship with one of the most famous people on the planet has “certainly been weird.”

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“On one hand, I’m happy for my brother that he seems to be in a relationship that he’s excited about, that he is genuine about. But there’s another end of it where it’s like, ‘Man, this is a lot,’” the centre for the Philadelphia Eagles said.

“There’s paparazzi talking about him fueling his car before the game today and I’m like, ‘Is that really necessary information to share?’”

Jason said that football players are used to fame, but called this spotlight “another level of stardom.”

“So on one hand, really, really happy for my brother and where he’s at in his current situation with Taylor but on the other hand, there’s some, I think, alarms sometimes with how you know, over-in-pursuit people can be.”

Kelce himself, a two-time Super Bowl winner who is one of the NFL’s most recognized faces, has also observed himself coming under more scrutiny.

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“I’ve noticed a few things, paparazzi outside my house, s*** like that, for sure. One hundred per cent and they all have British accents too, or something European,” Kelce said last month after Swift attended her first Chiefs game.

But as talk of their relationship heated up, Kelce immediately found himself courting a whole new fanbase. Following the 12-time Grammy Award winner’s appearance at Arrowhead Stadium in late September, jersey sales for the All-Pro tight-end spiked.

Kelce “saw a nearly 400% spike in sales throughout the Fanatics network of sites, including NFLShop.com,” a spokesperson for sportswear and fan merchandise company Fanatics told The Associated Press.

When Swift attended a Sunday night match between the Chiefs and New York Jets, viewership hit 27 million viewers, making it the most-watched Sunday show since Super Bowl LVII in February.

The eight-time Pro Bowler even noticed his game-day outfits being analyzed online with Swifties accusing him of having “the worst taste in clothes.”

But Kelce’s taking it all in stride with a smile on his face.

“I’m not going to be offended if somebody says I look like a clown if I got a fun hat on and some wacky jeans,” he playfully said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal. “It is what it is. I’m gonna have fun with it.”

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X: @markhdaniell

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