Travis Kelce’s NFL Losses ‘Affect’ Taylor Swift: ‘She’s Riding Out All of Those Emotions’ With Him

It wasn’t Travis Kelce’s finest moment: During the fourth quarter of the Kansas City Chiefs football game against the Houston Texans on Dec. 7, the tight end bobbled the ball, allowing the Texans to ultimately win the pivotal match-up at Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium. Shortly after the loss, a despondent Travis sat on a bench on the sidelines and stared into space before closing his eyes and hanging his head in dismay. Back in the locker room, the usually chatty three-time Super Bowl winner declined all post-game interview requests.

It’s no secret it’s been a disappointing season for Travis, who previously vowed to make what could be his final football stint one to remember. Now, his odds of going out on a high note are looking slim now that the Kansas City Chiefs have missed out on heading to the playoffs, and his professional downswing may be taking a toll on his mood — and his relationship with his fiancée, Taylor Swift.

“Like any top athlete, Travis is all about winning, so when things aren’t going the team’s way he takes it pretty badly,” a source tells Star. “The losses affect Taylor because she’s riding out all of those emotions alongside him.”

It’s become a trying time for the pair, who were engaged in an over-the-top proposal in August. “They’ve both been on a high for so long so this is uncharted territory for them,” notes the insider, adding that the multiplatinum singer and the football star are learning a hard lesson: “They’re not this golden couple who can wave a magic wand at anything and come out on top.”

Feeling Rattled

When Taylor and Travis, both 36, first started dating in the summer of 2023, both were at the peak of their respective games. Taylor had kicked off her successful Eras Tour (which went on to earn $2 billion in ticket sales) while Travis was coming off two recent Super Bowl wins and would soon win a third with the “Karma” singer cheering from the stands. After a devastating defeat by the Philadelphia Eagles during Super Bowl LIX in February, Travis brushed aside retirement rumors and declared he was more determined than ever to prove his worth. “The last thing Travis wants is to go out on a bad season,” says the source.

He’s under enormous pressure to turn things around, and it’s showing on and off the field. “Travis throws his heart and soul into every game,” says the source.

During the 2024 Super Bowl, he infamously bumped his coach Andy Reid and screamed in his face (he later admitted to “crossing the line”) and had another heated exchange with Reid in September (“he’s an emotional guy,” the coach said in a post-game interview), per Page Six.

“If they’re coming off a win, Travis is the happiest guy ever,” says the source, “but if they lose, he tends to mope and be pretty unapproachable for a while. It takes days for him to get over it. People know to walk on eggshells and leave him alone.” Taylor does her best to lift his spirits “but it’s hard for her to see him like that,” reveals the source.

The 14-time Grammy winner can relate to the stress to succeed. “We both, as a living, as a job, as a passion, perform for three and a half hours in NFL stadiums,” she told BBC Radio, adding, “For him, it’s practice. For me, it’s rehearsal. For him, it’s a game. For me it’s a show — we just call them different things… We’re both competitive like, in fun ways.”

Distraction Tactics

She’s encouraging Travis to focus on his future outside of football. He appeared in Ryan Murphy’s series Grotesquerie and Happy Gilmore 2 and hosted Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity?. In late 2024 he and his NFL vet brother Jason Kelce signed a $100 million deal with Wondery for their popular New Heights podcast. “I want to stay around the football world as a profession and then dabble in other areas as well,” he told GQ of his post-retirement plans. “The good news,” says the source, “is that Travis has so many options.”

He also has wedding planning to distract him. In early December, Page Six reported that the couple had booked the luxe Ocean House hotel in Rhode Island (where Taylor owns a $17 million mansion) for June 13. “Taylor is involving him in all the details,” says the source, adding, “overall things are great between them, but like every couple, they’re learning to navigate the ups and downs.”