Travis Kelce has built a career on taking hits in traffic, but on September 5 night Brazil, he was on the receiving end of an unusual blow: a slap to the facemask from Los Angeles Chargers defensive lineman Teair Tart.
The incident occurred midway through the third quarter of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ Week 1 clash when on a crucial third-and-1, the tight end engaged Tart in blocking as Patrick Mahomes scrambled for an 11-yard gain.
At the end of the play, after Kelce delivered a subtle shove, Tart retaliated by striking Kelce across the helmet with an open hand.
Officials penalized Teair with a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, but to the surprise of many fans and commentators, he was not ejected as social media quickly erupted with calls for Tart‘s removal.
Questions mounted as to why the punishment did not go further but the former NFL referee, Terry McAulay, now an analyst for NBC Sports and Amazon Prime, explained the ruling.
“The decision comes from either executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent,” McAulay said. “Or the senior vice president of officiating, and they looked at it, and according to Walt Anderson, they said because it was an open-hand contact to the head, that was not disqualifying action.
“[The amount of force and whether it’s open or closed-handed] can come into play, but on this one, they felt that it was just an open-hand blow to the head, not a closed fist, not a punch, and they did not disqualify in this case.”
According to league policy, the NFL has authority to escalate penalties if a foul is deemed “flagrant.” In this instance, however, the ruling body determined Tart’s strike did not reach the threshold for disqualification.
Kelce scores as Chiefs fall to Week 1 loss
Despite the controversy, Kelce still managed to leave a mark on the game – though his night was quiet until the fourth quarter as the veteran tight end finished with two catches for 47 yards and a touchdown in Kansas City‘s 27-21 defeat.
The 35-year-old’s lone highlight came early in the final period when he hauled in a 37-yard touchdown pass from Mahomes.
But before that score, he had only one catch for 10 yards and had collided with teammate Xavier Worthy in the opening minutes, a collision that forced the wide receiver to exit with a shoulder injury.
The Chiefs‘ offense sputtered for much of the night, punting on their first three drives as they depended on their quarterback’s individual brilliance as he briefly swung momentum back with an 11-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter.
He later connected with Kelce for the long score, but a failed two-point conversion attempt kept Kansas City behind and Los Angeles countered with steady production from Justin Herbert, who secured the win with a late rushing first down.
That allowed the Chargers to run out the clock but it was Herbert‘s connection with Quentin Johnston for a touchdown earlier in the half proved decisive, putting the Chiefs in a position where they needed a comeback that never materialized.
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