Behaviour towards Reid 'unacceptable', says Kelce

Travis Kelce has won three Super Bowls under Reid at the Kansas City Chiefs

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce says his behaviour towards head coach Andy Reid during Sunday’s Super Bowl was “definitely unacceptable”.

Kelce bumped into Reid, 65, and shouted in his face in the first quarter of the game against the San Francisco 49ers, which Kansas City won in overtime.

The 34-year-old was unhappy about being taken off when Isiah Pacheco fumbled the ball eight yards out.

Both Kelce and Reid downplayed the incident after the game in Las Vegas.

“I was just telling him how much I love him,” Kelce joked to CBS, while Reid told ESPN Kelce had apologised.

But speaking on New Heights, the podcast he co-hosts with his brother Jason, Kelce said: “I can’t get that fired up to the point where bumping coach and it’s getting him off balance and stuff.

“It came in a moment when we weren’t playing very well and I wasn’t playing very well.

“It’s definitely unacceptable and I immediately wished I could have taken it back. Coach Reid actually came right up to me after that and didn’t even have harsh words for me.”

Jason Kelce, who played two seasons under Reid with the Philadelphia Eagles, said his brother had “crossed the line”.

“The yelling in his face, too, was over the top,” Jason Kelce added on Wednesday’s podcast.

“I think there are better ways to handle this, retrospectively.”

Kelce, who is in a relationship with pop star Taylor Swift, said Reid would have had every right to respond to his outburst with physicality.

He added: “I’m a passionate guy. I love coach Reid. He knows how much I love to play for him, how much I love to be a product of his coaching career.”