"Football purists don’t care about Swift" - Pat McAfee slams critics dismissing Travis Kelce’s impact

Pat McAfee went in on people trying to downplay the impact Travis Kelce has on the NFL. After losing Super Bowl LIX to the Philadelphia Eagles and amid retirement rumors, the Chiefs veteran has been on the receiving end of criticism.

McAfee clapped back at those people on Wednesday's edition of his show, mentioning plenty of things the tight end has done in and for the league while blasting people for trying to dismiss all of that.

"You've won a bunch of Super Bowls, you've made a bunch of money, you've represented the sport incredibly well in public. And you know what? Nobody in football wants to give him that credit. A lot of football purists are like, 'I don’t care about Swift,'" he said.

In 11 NFL seasons, he has played 174 games and caught 1,004 passes for 12,151 receiving yards and 77 receiving touchdowns. Additionally, he's won three Super Bowls in five trips to the big game. He has collected several records over the years, including the most receiving touchdowns in Chiefs history and the most consecutive games catching a pass.

One could argue that everything changed when he started dating Taylor Swift, but the off-field stuff didn't matter before until he entered a relationship with the multiple-time Grammy award winner. Numbers don't lie and nothing Kelce has done can't be undone, even less due to his personal relationships.

Kansas City Chiefs GM shares surprising update about Travis Kelce's future

After losing Super Bowl LIX and facing the prospect of seeing several important players leave the franchise, the Kansas City Chiefs have an uncertain future. Travis Kelce's retirement decision has become a recurring topic after the gut-wrenching loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

Chiefs general manager Brett Veach told NFL insider Tom Pelissero that Kelce wants to be back and keep playing at the highest level.

"Travis is excited to come back and, you know, he finds a way to stay in shape and produce that at a level only he can," Veach said. "So that is such an intangible to have in the locker room with the guys. And obviously the relationship he has with Pat [Mahomes] is unique, too. So he makes us better when he's in our locker room and on the field and again, excited to get him back."

The Chiefs are licking their wounds after failing to become the first team to win three straight Super Bowls in NFL history. Nevertheless, they are ready to bounce back and Kelce would be integral to their plans.