“Shouldn’t even be able to work at f**king Foot Locker” – Why Travis Kelce snapped on Super Bowl referee Carl Cheffers
Travis Kelce is undoubtedly one of the greatest tight ends in NFL history. He is also one of the most beloved personalities in the entire league. NFL fans often find plenty of enjoyment in listening to what the outspoken tight end has to say.
He has been well known to entertain the media during interviews and appearances, while also hosting his own New Heights podcast with his brother Jason Kelce.
While the vast majority of Travis Kelce's quotes are usually in good fun, that hasn't always been the case. He has also been proactive in being verbal when something happens on the football field that he disagrees with, such as certain referee calls. A prime example of this occurred during the Divisional Round of the 2015 NFL Playoffs.
The Kansas City Chiefs trailed the Pittsburgh Steelers 18-16 in the final moments of this winner-take-all game. The Chiefs scored a touchdown, allowing them to go for two in an attempt to tie the game.
They initially converted successfully, but referee Carl Cheffers negated the conversion with a holding call on Chiefs offensive lineman Eric Fisher.
The Chiefs failed to convert on their second attempt, resulting in a loss to the Steelers. Travis Kelce heavily disagreed with the holding call and didn't hold back his opinion of Cheffers when discussing the play after the game.
"Referee No. 51 shouldn't even be able to wear a zebra jersey ever again. He shouldn't even be able to work at f***ing Foot Locker. For it to end like that, with the referee literally taking it out of our hands, that hurts. You try to play this game with integrity, to the end of the whistle, and when the refs want to take over the game and make it their own platform, there's nothing you can do about it. That wasn't a hold on my guy Eric Fisher. I hope he doesn't go the entire offseason thinking it was his fault. That was horses**t, flat out."
This is Travis Kelce after the Steelers/Chiefs 2016 AFC divisional game talking about … Carl Cheffers, tonight’s official. https://t.co/nz5Nnk5tRO
Travis Kelce made it perfectly clear that he believes Carl Cheffers robbed his team of an opportunity to eventually win their game against the Steelers. Now, seven years later, Kelce may have an opportunity to play in a game with an even higher stake than this one, refereed again by Carl Cheffers.
Travis Kelce and Carl Cheffers could potentially meet again at Super Bowl LVII
The NFL has officially announced that Carl Cheffers will serve as the head referee for the upcoming Super Bowl LVII. This is a familiar spot for Cheffers as he will be in charge of the Super Bowl officiating crew for the third time in the last seven years.
The last time Carl Cheffers received this honor was at Super Bowl LV. Travis Kelce played in this game, but his Kansas City Chiefs were defeated by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Kelce will hope to have more success in Cheffers' game this year if the Chiefs are able to make it there. They will first have to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Conference Championship game.