Travis Kelce is stepping up and taking the hit for the team. The Kansas City Chiefs' tight end took full responsibility for his collision with teammate Xavier Worthy during the team's season-opening loss to the Los Angeles Chargers in São Paulo, Brazil, on September 5. "I owe my guy big time, man. X knows it, and I felt like crap," Kelce confessed on the September 10 episode of *New Heights*. "I could barely even fucking play the rest of that first half, man. But we rallied once I found out he was in better spirits than I had imagined."
The 35-year-old veteran went on to "take the most accountability" for the incident, which left the 22-year-old Worthy injured. "I wasn’t ready—that first drive, I ran right into one of my guys and took him out of the game," Kelce recounted. "I literally sidelined one of my own players. That’s one of the most frustrating things, and it’s tough to get your mojo back knowing you just hurt a teammate."
From Kelce's perspective, his extensive experience in the NFL—13 years in the league—should have enabled him to avoid such mishaps at this stage of his career. "I’ve just gotta be better, man," Kelce admitted. "There’s no excuse for me to be crashing into my own guys like that and not being able to play fast and contribute. Worthy had his guy beat, and we were off to the races—that game could’ve started completely differently."
He also hailed Worthy as "one of our best players," praising him as being on the cusp of "becoming one of the best receivers in the National Football League."
As for Worthy’s condition in the days following the collision, Kelce was uncertain whether he would be ready to play when the Chiefs face the Philadelphia Eagles on September 14 in a rematch of this year’s Super Bowl. "I’m not sure where he’s at health-wise, but I’m hoping we get him back as soon as possible because he means so much to this team," he said. "I see how hard that guy works, and I can see his game improving every day. I know he’s going to take the league by storm when he gets back."
Meanwhile, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid stated that the team is taking things "day by day" with Worthy. "He’s rehabbing and working on his shoulder," Reid told Kansas City’s Sports Radio 810 WHB. "We’ll see how it progresses."
