The NFL has seen an influx of new viewers and fans early this season. That's because singer and 12-time Grammy Award-winner Taylor Swift has been in attendance for the Kansas City Chiefs' Week 3 and 4 games. It's not just that Swift was attending, but that she was sitting in the suite of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, as the two are rumored to be dating.
While Swift is bringing her vast audience to the NFL, fans of the sport believe that the league is getting carried away. From the constant camera shots of Swift during Kansas City's Week 4 game against the New York Jets to the NFL's official Instagram account bio reading, "Chiefs are 2-0 as Swifties."
One person who believes the NFL is "overdoing it" is Kelce himself. During the latest episode of the 'New Heights Podcast' with his older brother and Philadelphia Eagles center, Jason Kelce, Travis shared his thoughts on celebrities getting attention on NFL broadcasts.
"I think it's fun when they show who's at the game," said Kelce. "I think it brings a little bit more to the atmosphere, brings a little bit more to what you're watching. But at the same time, they're overdoing it a little bit, especially my situation."
Travis Kelce says NFL is 'overdoing it' with Taylor Swift coverage during games
During that clip, Jason says he believes the NFL isn't used to this kind of coverage while bringing up the NBA as an example of how to deal with celebrities attending the games. As in, show the celebrities sitting at courtside, then move to cover the game.
The Chiefs and Jets played on Sunday Night Football on NBC this past week, and the broadcast cut to Swift no less than 17 times during the game, according to Front Office Sports.
NBC announced that the game averaged 27 million viewers between the channel and its streaming service, Peacock. This is the highest average viewership for an NFL game since Super Bowl 57 between the Chiefs and Eagles. Additionally, NBC said that their viewership peaked at 29 million viewers.
As mentioned earlier, the NFL's Instagram profile briefly had their bio read, "Chiefs are 2-0 as Swifties." With the amount of backlash and criticism that the league was getting carried away, they removed it from the page.
The Chiefs will be on the road against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. If Swift is in attendance for the third consecutive week, you best believe that there will be a count on how many times the singer is shown on camera.
