LAS VEGAS — The biggest impact Travis Kelce made in the first half of Super Bowl LVIII was on his coach.
He then made an impact on the field in the fourth quarter as the Chiefs rallied for the win.
Kelce lost his cool in the second quarter after being taken off the field.
He screamed at Chiefs coach Andy Reid and then bumped into him with enough force to make Reid stumble.
Running back Jerick McKinnon quickly grabbed Kelce.
Kelce was upset as he came off the field after a 52-yard pass from Patrick Mahomes to Mecole Hardman set the Chiefs up at the 49ers’ 9-yard line.
Reid called a personnel package that did not include Kelce on the next play.
They handed the ball off to Isiah Pacheco, and he fumbled.
The 49ers recovered the ball.
Reid said Kelce told him that, if he put him in the game, he’d score.
“As much as he bumps into me, I bump into him,” Reid said. “He caught me off balance.”
Kelce said: “I was just telling him how much I love him.”
Kelce later gave Reid a hug, and Reid patted him on the back.
It was a frustrating game early for Kelce, who has been at the center of Super Bowl week because of his relationship with pop star Taylor Swift.
Kelce only had one catch for 1 yard in the first half.
The 49ers were physical with Kelce, playing a lot of press coverage against him.
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Kelce had a catch early in the third quarter for 9 yards but came up shy of a first down, setting up a third-and-1 from the Kansas City 11, and Pacheco was stuffed on third down, forcing a punt.
Kelce heated up in the fourth quarter, catching passes of 16 and 13 yards on the drive after the 49ers took a 16-13 lead.
The Chiefs drove to the 4-yard line but had to settle for a Harrison Butker field goal to tie the game at 16-16.
He made a huge 22-yard gain on third-and-7 on the final drive of regulation when the Chiefs tied it 19-19.
He ended up leading the Chiefs with nine catches for 93 yards after the slow start.
“I stopped playing like a jabroni,” Kelce said.
Kelce now has three Super Bowl rings with Mahomes.
“Never a doubt in my mind,”Kelce said. “We knew when they had to kick a field goal it was on us. We have the best quarterback in the league. We have the best offensive mind in the league. We’ve got the most determination of any team in the NFL and you saw all of that today.”
Kelce spoke to his teammates on Saturday night, and they said he gave a moving speech. What was his message?
“That we had the formula,” Kelce said. “We know how to go and get it. They didn’t.”
