Travis Kelce Exits Kansas City Chiefs Game With Ankle Injury
November 15, 2026 412 views

Travis Kelce Exits Kansas City Chiefs Game With Ankle Injury

By Sarah Collins
Travis Kelce suffered a tackle in the Kansas City Chiefs’ first quarter against the Atlanta Falcons that caused injury to his ankle, with the tight end limping off the field for evaluation. Travis Kelce is taking some bench time. The Kansas City Chiefs’ tight end exited the team’s Nov. 15 match up against the Atlanta F

Travis Kelce suffered a tackle in the Kansas City Chiefs’ first quarter against the Atlanta Falcons that caused injury to his ankle, with the tight end limping off the field for evaluation. 

Travis Kelce is taking some bench time. 

The Kansas City Chiefs’ tight end exited the team’s Nov. 15 match up against the Atlanta Falcons after his very first catch of the game, suffering an apparent injury to an already tender ankle.

While Kelce received quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ 23-yard pass, the 37-year-old was tackled by the Falcons’ DeMarcco Hellams. Kelce was slow to get up from the hit but was able to limp to the sideline without assistance where his ankle was taped by the medical team. Rather than retake the field, however, Kelce made his way to the locker room for additional evaluation. 

The Chiefs noted his return to the field as questionable.

Thankfully, since he was able to complete a pass before his exit from the game, Kelce has now achieved a milestone 200 consecutive games with at least one reception. 

Not present for the injury or new achievement, however, was Kelce’s wife Taylor Swift. Though the Grammy winner has become a staple at the Chiefs’ home games at Arrowhead Stadium, Swift often skips Kelce’s away games, including the game at Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium. 

But when she does take in the on-field action live in person, Swift is often accompanied by some pals in her VIP suite. Recently, she enjoyed an enchanting reunion with pal Karlie Kloss, who joined Swift at the Chiefs’ Nov. 8 home game against the New York Jets.

The pair—who were inseparable BFFs before a rumored growing apart in the 2010s—were all smiles and even shared a hug as they watched the game, with Kloss being joined by her and her husband Jared Kushner’s 5-year-old son Levi. 

But even before they watched Swift’s guy on the Chiefs, Kloss and Swift had already proved they’d shaken off any rumored bad blood. After all, Kloss and Kushner were also on the 1,000-person guest list to witness Kelce and Swift’s nuptials in July.

And like any loyal BFF, Kloss refused to fill in any blanks spaces on what exactly went down inside Madison Square Garden.

“Listen, I try to protect the privacy of my friends’ personal lives,” the mom of three said when asked about the wedding on Today. “But what I will say is that they’re an amazing couple and I’m so happy for them.”

For a look back at how Kelce and Swift went from missed bracelet connections to being the perfect teammates, read on. 

July 2023: Make the Friendship Bracelets

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's love story began in July 2023, when the singer's Eras Tour made a stop at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo.

As a huge Swiftie, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end caught the show with hopes of giving Taylor a friendship bracelet with his number on it. However, he failed to complete the pass due to her pre-show rituals.

"I was disappointed that she doesn't talk before or after her shows because she has to save her voice for the 44 songs that she sings," Travis shared on the July 26 episode of his New Heights podcast. "So, I was a little butt-hurt I didn't get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her."

After publicly recounting his fumble—a move Taylor would later describe as "metal as hell"—Travis decided to shoot his shot and invite the Grammy winner to watch the Chiefs play at Arrowhead Stadium.

"I threw it out there, I threw the ball in her court," he shared on The Pat McAfee Show. "I told her, you know, 'I've seen you rock the stage in Arrowhead, you might have to come see me rock the stage in Arrowhead and see which one's a little more lit.' So, we'll see what happens in the near future."

Travis was rocking a mustache—which he debuted in August during training camp—when he was first introduced to Taylor.

As he later noted of the era, "That 'stache and the 87 jersey was pretty iconic there for a little bit, and I had it when I met Taylor for the first time."

By early September, a source close to the situation told E! News that Travis and Taylor were "texting and talking here and there."

"It's been very low-key," the insider explained, "as he's been in season."

Accepting Travis' invite, Taylor joined the athlete's mom Donna Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium to watch him and the Chiefs take on the Chicago Bears. After the game, Taylor and Travis were seen packing PDA at a local bar.

Though folklore had it that it was the couple's first in-person meeting, the "Karma" singer later clarified the two had spent a "significant amount of time" getting to know each other beforehand.

As Taylor noted, "We would never be psychotic enough to hard launch a first date." 

As an indication that the relationship was heating up, Taylor brought her squad—including friends Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Sophie Turner, Hugh Jackman, Sabrina Carpenter and Antoni Porowski—to watch the Chiefs play against the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

October 2023: It's Nice to Have a Friend

Another sign that Travis could be The 1? Taylor started bonding with Brittany Mahomes—the wife of Travis' BFF and teammate Patrick Mahomes—in and outside of NFL games.

The couple took their romance to TV, making a surprise appearance on the Oct. 14 episode of Saturday Night Live. Their Big Apple takeover also included the after-party for the NBC sketch show and a date night at the Waverly Inn.

During a bye week, Travis traveled down to Argentina to catch the South American leg of Taylor's Eras Tour. Not only did the NFL star bond with Taylor's dad, Scott Swift, at the Nov. 11 show in Buenos Aires, but he also got a special shoutout from the stage.

"Karma is that guy on the Chiefs," Taylor sang, "coming straight home to me."

After the show, the Midnights artist was seen running up to Travis backstage and greeting him with a passionate kiss.

Taylor addressed the lavender craze surrounding her appearances at Travis' games.

"I'm going to see him do what he loves, we're showing up for each other, other people are there and we don't care," she told Time. "The opposite of that is you have to go to an extreme amount of effort to make sure no one knows that you're seeing someone."

The music superstar turned Travis' Dec. 17 game into a family affair, bringing her dad to cheer on her man.

Taylor and Travis spent their first New Year's Eve together, sharing a romantic kiss when the clock struck midnight on Jan. 1.

Continuing to bond with Travis' family, Taylor hung out with his brother Jason Kelce and sister-in-law Kylie Kelce at the Chiefs' game against the Buffalo Bills.

Taylor joined Travis on the football field when the Chiefs won the AFC Championship, a victory that cemented the team's spot in the 2024 Super Bowl. The couple shared a celebratory kiss before exchanging the L-word.

"Tay, I'm gonna enjoy with the guys," he told her. "I love you—so much it's not funny."

The pair locked lips on the field after Travis led the Kansas City Chiefs to victory on Feb. 11, 2024 in Las Vegas.

Taylor posted footage of Travis on social media for the first time Feb. 12, poking fun at how she took her parents clubbing with the athlete after the Super Bowl.

Taylor's first Instagram pic featuring Travis was a selfie of the two with Prince William and his and wife Kate Middleton's eldest kids Prince George and Princess Charlotte backstage at the singer's Eras tour show at Wembley Stadium in London.

June 2024: Travis' Eras Tour Stage Debut

While attending his seventh Eras tour concert, and second show at London's Wembley Stadium, the NFL star joined his girlfriend onstage as a backup performer during her performance of "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart."

Taylor joined Travis for the Chief's first game of the regular 2024-25 season and appeared to re-enact a PDA moment from October 2023 in this photo shared by Chariah Gordon, who is pictured with her boyfriend, Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman.

The two attended model Karen Elson's wedding to Electric Lady Studios owner Lee Foster in New York City.

The next day, the pair attended the men's singles final match at the U.S. Open.

The two stepped out for a double dinner date with Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds in NYC.

The pair stepped out for two back-to-back dates in New York City over the last weekend of 2024, matching outfits both times.

The pair spent the NFL off-season together, enjoying a snowy vacation to Montana with sportscaster Erin Andrews.

Travis posted his first pics with Taylor on Instagram in July 2025, including an adorable shot of them at dinner—which subtly revealed their phone lockscreen pics of one another.

August: 2025: Taking Their Romance to New Heights

Self-described New Heights superfan Taylor made her debut on Travis and Jason's podcast in a nearly two-hour-long special episode Aug. 13. In addition to very candidly detailing their life together—in and out of the spotlight—Taylor also revealed her 12th studio album The Life of a Showgirl, set to debut Oct. 3.

August 2025: She'd Marry Him With Paper Rings

More than two years after Travis' podcast shoutout heard 'round the world, Travis and Taylor announced they are engaged. Making a cheeky reference to her song "So High School." the two captioned the Aug. 26 Instagram post featuring their engagement photos, "Your English teacher and your gym teacher are getting married."

While Taylor would've married Travis with paper rings, the athlete popped the question with an old mine brilliant cut diamond sparkler he co-designed with Artifex Fine Jewelry's Kindred Lubeck.

October 2025: The Life of a Showgirl in Love

Taylor released The Life of a Showgirl, her 12th studio album that she recorded during the Eras Tour. Songs about her romance with Travis include "The Fate of Ophelia"—which included many Easter eggs about the NFL star—and "Wood," in which she cheekily sang that his "love was the key that opened my thighs.”

"New Heights of manhood," Taylor continued on the track, referencing the name of Travis' podcast. "I ain't gotta knock on wood."

Taylor and Travis made their first award show appearance as a couple at the 2026 iHeartRadio Music Awards, where she won seven trophies including Pop Album of the Year for The Life of a Showgirl.

"The Life of a Showgirl was really inspired by the energy that I felt like looking into crowds and seeing you guys every single night," she told fans in the audience. "This album probably also feels very happy and confident and free because that's the way that I get to feel every single day of my life because of my fiancé, who's here tonight."

Taylor added as a nod to her "The Fate of Ophelia" lyrics, "So, thanks for all the vibes."

Ahead of their highly anticipated wedding, the couple enjoyed a PDA-filled date night at a New York Knicks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers game in Travis' hometown.