NFL Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez praised Taylor Swift for shining a light on America’s favorite pastime through her romance with Travis Kelce.
“I think it’s great that Taylor’s done this for the NFL,” Gonzalez, 47, said during a Thursday, November 30, appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show. “She’s brought a whole new audience, it’s been great.”
Gonzalez recalled recently being in the airport when a 10-year-old girl approached him to say hello. “Usually men come up to me, occasionally a woman, but I was like, ‘Oh, a 10-year-old girl? How cool I’m getting so popular,’” he quipped about the exchange. “She goes, ‘Hi, Is your name Tony? Do you know Travis Kelce?’”
Gonzalez played in the NFL for 17 seasons before his retirement in 2013. The athlete spent his first 12 seasons as a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, the same team as Swift’s boyfriend Kelce, 34, before later joining the Atlanta Falcons. He finished his career with 14 Pro Bowl selections, six first-team All-Pros and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2019.
Earlier this week, Kelce made headlines when he reached 11,000 receiving yards in the fewest number of games as a tight end, breaking a record previously held by Gonzalez. At the time, Gonzalez took to social media to congratulate his former teammate, writing via X (formerly Twitter), “Congrats and well earned my friend! Keep it going @tkelce.”
Swift, 33, also showed her support by “liking” an Instagram post shared by the Kansas City Chiefs about the milestone. “Fastest tight end to 11k receiving yards AND the only player in franchise history to do it 🏹,” the post read.
As for Swift and Kelce, the couple have “very detailed plans” on staying close while “she’s on tour and he has games,” a third insider told Us earlier this month. “They don’t want to start their relationship off with big gaps [in time spent apart]. They’re trying to be as much like a regular couple as possible.”