KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Travis Kelce conceded his emotions got the best of him during the Chiefs' 19-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts Sunday night when he shoved offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.
“It's something that immediately I regretted and I just wanted to make it good and let him know that I'm ready to rock 'n' roll for you,” Kelce said.
Television cameras caught Kelce and Bieniemy on the sidelines in a conversation, which ended with Kelce appearing to shove the coach. Cameras also caught the two shortly afterwards patching things up between them.
“You guys saw me hug him afterward,” Kelce said. “I love that guy, and that will never change and I appreciate him always being on my tail to get me going.”
Kelce wouldn't elaborate on the words the two exchanged. Bieniemy, who his schedule appearance with the media on Thursday, has yet to speak publicly about the incident.
Head coach Andy Reid on Monday downplayed the exchange between his offensive coordinator and star wide receiver. He argues similar incidents happen “every week, everywhere” football fields when emotions run high.
“(Kelce) was mad at himself and (Bieniemy) got after him a little bit,” Reid said. “Those kind of things happen, but it all worked out alright afterwards. That happens, you just don’t have as many cameras normally as you do on a Sunday night game.”
Kelce acknowledge feeling more frustrated during the loss than he felt in a while. He explained that prompted him to look back on how he handle the more frustrating moments in order to focus on attacking the next play and clearing his mind.
“It's football, it's not always going to go your way,” Kelce said. “I just got to maintain the level of focus and the level of excitement that I have for the game.”
Kelce feels he and Bieniemy are wired the same way when it comes to their competitive nature. He described Bieniemy as a father figure.
“I love him, he's helped me out tremendously as a person, as a professional and I'm sure he'll keep doing that throughout the rest of my career,” Kelce said. “And just what happened on the sidelines, sometimes football you get a little heated with your brothers or your coaches.”
