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Tush, a real nail biter. SF has some wicked defense moves. Looks like there's a chance for overtime.

Stressed me out! Congrats to KC Chiefs!

Great game!!!! Congratulations to the Chiefs and fans!!

The low point of the game was Travis Kelce getting in Andy Reid's face and yelling at him. Andy Reid is a great coach and deserves better than that.

It was a really fun game to watch.

The low point of the game was Travis Kelce getting in Andy Reid's face and yelling at him. Andy Reid is a great coach and deserves better than that.

Reid's response below:

"He didn't know I was gonna go that far [when he bumped me]. Then he came over and gave me a hug, said 'sorry about that.' You know what, he just wants to be on the field and he wants to play. There's nobody I get better than I get him. He's a competitive kid, he loves to play, and he makes me feel young. (jokingly) But my balance is terrible!"

I think it looked worse than it was. If Reid wasn't bothered - I don't think the rest of us should be.

Sorry, I disagree. Of course Reid is going to smooth things over for the public. We don't know what was said in private.

Travis Kelce is competitive and wants to be on the field just like every other player in the NFL. He still needs to learn to control his temper and show some respect for his coach. He shouldn't be given more slack because he is a star and a media darling. I think Andy Reid is one of the best but am a little disappointed in his statement. Admit that he lost control of his temper and that he needs to do better. It's not the first time he has thrown a tantrum.

He is a role model for young players. It is NOT ok to scream at your coach.

Edit for spelling.

[This message edited by zebra25 at 8:12 PM, Monday, February 12th]

Of course Reid is going to smooth things over for the public. We don't know what was said in private.

No, of course we don't actually know what was said in private. But it was reported in real time (by someone not on the team) that Kelce hugged Reid shortly after the incident and Reid patted him on the back, so it seems reasonable to take Andy Reid at his word on this. Yes Kelce is a role model, but that doesn't require his coach to derail Super Bowl victory celebrations in order to publicly flog one of his team's biggest stars. If there actually were hard feelings from this (which I highly doubt), I think it's actually more appropriate for that to be handled privately/off camera. Keep in mind, that at the time of his initial interviews Reid likely hadn't even watched the clip that has now gone viral.

While I certainly don't think it was a good look for Kelce, the online reaction has definitely been overblown. Having an emotionally unregulated moment in one of the highest stress, highest pressure events any of us can imagine, does not make him the "edler abuser" people are now accusing him of being. I'm not accusing you of it specifically Zebra (I appreciate you're not calling it an assault like many are), but the absolute hysteria over this incident does seem a little like manufactured outrage. I can't tell how much of it is because there were so many viewers this year that are not regular football/sports viewers, how much is just disgruntled SF fans, or how much is because people are just bothered (for whatever reason) by the recent Swift/Kelce media (over)-saturation and are rooting for any possibility of a fall from grace. This may be one of the silliest sentences I've ever written, but I also assume that to some degree, the online frenzy here is being bolstered by the Taylor Swift is a psy-op/the-Super-Bowl-was-rigged conspiracy theorist outrage machine. Again, I'm not suggesting Kelce's behaviour should be lauded or even normalized in this instance, but I do think the drama around it has been a little disingenuous.

If the outrage machine wants to talk about role models in the NFL, I kind of think they should start with the actual domestic abusers that far too many teams teams have on their rosters.

I appreciate your input and discussion emergent. Your posts are always insightful and I rarely disagree with anything you post.

You make some good points. I was not aware people were calling this elder abuse and agree that is ridiculous. I am a football fan and watch a lot of football, not just the big games. I'm not a disgruntled 49ers fan.

I'm not surprised Kelce hugged Reid. That's what many people do after losing control of themselves. I'm sure he was sorry he did that and with so many people watching. I hope he learns to control his emotions and behavior just like everyone else has to do.

Kelce threw a tantrum, slamming and banging his helmet during another game so this lack of self control wasn't a one time thing. He is a seasoned player who has played in big games under pressure many, many times. He should know how to control his emotions. He wouldn't bump a ref because he knows that is not tolerated.

I stand by my opinion that screaming at a coach, getting in their face and bumping them is disrespectful and shows a lack of self control. He does not get a pass because he is a star or because he was frustrated or because he was playing in a big, high stress game. Lots of people deal with huge amounts of stress and frustration yet are expected to control their tempers and frustration. He wasn't the only one on that field feeling pressure and frustration.

I did see that a former Chiefs player stated earlier in the season that both Kelce and Mahomes needed to stop smashing their helmets and screaming at their teammates. He said they are both acting like entitled brats. Apparently Kelce also punched a teammate during training camp.

This behavior would not be acceptable for anyone else so why are we (not you emergent,we in general) giving him a pass? I'm just really surprised at the excuses being made for him. He disrespected his coach. That is not ok.

If my daughter was dating him I would advise her to run in the other direction.

I don't particularly understand Taylor's attraction to him. My daughter disagrees with me when I say he's not that good looking. I also said if they get married, I hope their kids look like Taylor instead of him and his Mom. She said that was mean but she did sort of agree.

I agree Jeanie. I think Taylor is gorgeous. I think he is just average looking. Part of what makes Taylor beautiful is her smile and how she carries herself and I'm not a Swiftie. I used to like Travis but my opinion of him has changed. I think she could do much better.

It's not up to me though.

I hope you don't mistake my disagreement with disrespect either zebra. I certainly don't mean any.

I stand by my opinion that screaming at a coach, getting in their face and bumping them is disrespectful and shows a lack of self control.

I would take issue with any suggestion that the bump was intentional, but I don't disagree with the rest of it. He absolutely looked like an unhinged meathead. But I don't think that even the biggest Travis Kelce hater out there could stand there and say that Kelce doesn't have respect for Andy Reid with a straight face. They have been together for 11 years - Kelce's entire pro career, and have one of the closest coach/player relationships of almost anyone in the league. I agree that another player may not have gotten away with that, but Kelce/Reid have a different relationship than most coach/players - they get each other and it's part of the reason that the franchise has been so successful. It's no secret that Travis Kelce is an overly emotional player - he'd probably be the first to call himself a hot head. The irony is that of all the toxic masculinity in the NFL - and there is no shortage of that historically - I actually find him to be a pretty refreshing change of pace. I think it’s good for there to be a high profile NFL player that talks about vulnerability and making mistakes and - gasp - his feelings. I expect he will address the issue on his podcast whenever they do their next episode.

I'm not surprised Kelce hugged Reid. That's what many people do after losing control of themselves

.

Right. None of us are perfect. We all lose our cool sometimes and let the pressure get to us and snap at our spouse, make a snarky comment to a friend, or yell at our kids, etc (you know, the people close to us). And when we do, the correct thing to do is own it, apologize, and (hopefully) move on. If Andy Reid was mad about this he'd have been perfectly to have benched Kelce for the game and traded him after the season ended. And maybe that would have satisfied you and some others, but arguably that would be have cost the team the Super Bowl victory. Instead, it appears Andy Reid put his ego aside, saw it for what it was, accepted the apology and was able to use one of his best players to go on to win the Super Bowl. His ability to understand and manage his players is part of why he's a great coach. It's between the two of them and I don't think we're owed any more than this.

I think what feels disingenuous is the seeming desire for blood that exists beyond this, and the suggestion that any calls for context are somehow excusing abusive behaviour. Two things can be true: (1) the outburst crossed a line; and (2) that the context it occurred in is highly relevant to how much weight/time/attention we should devote to it.

This behavior would not be acceptable for anyone else so why are we (not you emergent,we in general) giving him a pass? I'm just really surprised at the excuses being made for him.

I mean, yeah. If I got in my boss's face and screamed because I was worked up because a deal I was working on had gone sideways and I wanted my boss to give me more responsibility so I could ensure it went better, I'd appropriately be called a lunatic. But I work in an office environment where any amount of screaming is unacceptable. To that end though, if my boss was happy with the outcome of the deal and tackled me to the ground and starfished on me the way that Andy Reid did to Chris Jones during the post-game celebrations, I would probably think that crossed some lines too. Suggesting that the sidelines of the Super Bowl is qualitatively different than other environments is not, by itself, making excuses for bad behaviour. Obviously the context matters. Like it or loathe it, professional football is a highly physical, aggressive, arguably barbaric activity - essentially NONE of the behaviour that occurs during a football game would be acceptable in many other context. It is one thing to judge/dislike/have valid complaints about the sport, but it's quite another to ignore/refuse to understand the context of the sport just to hate on Travis Kelce.

He is not the first, and wont be the last, athlete to have an emotional outburst in the context of a game. It is common to see bats thrown and watercoolers tipped, Tom Brady screamed and smashed ipads, Serena Williams yelled at the ref (which somehow earned her more backlash than the many male tennis players before her that smashed rackets), and the NHL's fighting culture is prolific (when I was a kid - there were entire shows dedicated to hockey fights). While I don't think any of that behaviour reflects well on any of those athletes individually, it's not fair or appropriate to suggest that their behaviour in the context of the game, means that they are likely to be abusive in other contexts, which is exactly what you are suggesting when you say this:

If my daughter was dating him I would advise her to run in the other direction.

That part seems like an over-reaction.

Edit: Finished an unfinished sentence.

[This message edited by emergent8 at 1:57 AM, Wednesday, February 14th]

"I hope you don't mistake my disagreement with disrespect either zebra. I certainly don't mean any."

Not at all!! I think this was a respectful back and forth conversation. I am fine with disagreeing and like to read different opinions.

For me, K else's sideline behaviour was a low point to a great game and half time show.

I don't care who he is or about any of the numerous excuses made for him, his behaviour was wrong. There are plenty of players in the NFL that would not do that. Why lower the bar for him?

That's my opinion. I would say the same thing if it were a player on my favorite team.

"it's not fair or appropriate to suggest that their behaviour in the context of the game, means that they are likely to be abusive in other contexts, which is exactly what you are suggesting when you say this:"

His behaviour was on the sideline. He has lost his temper more than once this season. I absolutely think it's fair to say this is a red flag. When things aren't going his way he screams and throws things. It does not matter that it's A football game. Lots of other successful players don't behave that way. Life is stressful and there are things much more stressful than football. If he can't control himself in that setting there is a strong possibility he will have a temper problem in other settings. I'm not sure what wasn't appropriate. It's my opinion.

"Like it or loathe it, professional football is a highly physical, aggressive, arguably barbaric activity - essentially NONE of the behaviour that occurs during a football game would be acceptable in many other context. It is one thing to judge/dislike/have valid complaints about the sport, but it's quite another to ignore/refuse to understand the context of the sport just to hate on Travis Kelce."

I understand football. I am married to an ex football player who lives, eats and breathes the game. He agrees with me. What Kelce did was on the sideline. You can play the game without being disrespectful to your coach and teammates. Who is hating on him? I said his behaviour was a low point of the game.

No, I really don't think telling my daughter to avoid dating someone who throws temper tantrums is an overreaction.

I think we just see this differently which is ok. I just wanted to make sure I explained myself clearly. I was not intending to throw hate at him. I didn't like his behaviour.

Thanks for sharing your viewpoint!! I read your thoughtful posts a couple of times.

10 people shot this afternoon at the Chief's celebration day in Kansas City, following the parade.

I just read that.

Absolutely horrible. I just heard the Mayor had requested Taylor Swift not attend due to concerns' for her. So it makes me wonder if they had a warning. The police chief says they had 800 officers there so it sounds like they were trying to be cautious. Watching live coverage and it's sickening.

Now 2 of the 22 people shot are confirmed deceased. Nine of the 22 are children. Three people are in critical condition.

Nine of the 22 are children.

Can you imagine if you were one of the parents who took their children to this parade??

It’s so sad. This is who we are now. This is America. There’s no denying it.

Children means anyone under 18. Please keep that in mind as this plays out.
I suspect this is gang activity. We all have to wait and see. 1 person dead. Multiple victims. Some injuries due to crowds rushing.
3 suspects one of which was tackled by parade goers.

Praying for all the hospitals staff and caregivers. Mass casualty events like this can be tough and very dramatic for the staff.

Tushnurse, I read the city had 800 member of law enforcement on hand, with some coming from other areas? You are probably right about gang activity (every state has that!) So perhaps the mayor and police chief, who both seem really competent, were well prepared. Lots of misinformation is to be expected but the last I heard last night was a second person is deceased. The shooter arrested does appear to be quite young.

The sister of a friend of mine is a nurse who was at the parade. She administered CPR on one of the victims who had been shot in the head. She's rattled today because she was so close to the shooters - and she had her children with her. She's worried about what they've witnessed and the trauma of the experience.