Alex Smith blames Travis Kelce for Patrick Mahomes taking over the Chiefs
Before Patrick Mahomes turned the Chiefs into the NFL’s most feared dynasty, Kansas City was stuck in neutral. From 2013 to 2017, the team made the playoffs four times, but success never lasted. Alex Smith was piling up yards-over 4,000 in 2017, his best season-but the postseason numbers didn’t translate. The Chiefs’ playoff win rate during his run? Just 20 percent.
When Mahomes arrived, everything flipped. Since 2018, Kansas City has ripped off an 81 percent playoff win rate, hoisted three Lombardi trophies, and erased the “same old Chiefs” narrative. For Smith, though, the arrival of Mahomes wasn’t just a football story. It was personal.
Travis Kelce gets playful revenge on Mahomes over Brazil comment
Smith admits that draft night in 2017 was a gut punch. “What the hell were they thinking?” he once told The Pat McAfee Show. He had just led the team to another postseason, but the front office traded up for his replacement. It didn’t matter that he was still winning games. The clock had started ticking.
The Kelce Effect
On the New Heights podcast with Jason and Travis Kelce, Smith finally revealed what sealed his fate: the instant connection between Mahomes and Kelce.
“You had this superstar tight end who instantly clicked with him,” Smith said. “When the best player on the team buys in, everybody else follows. That’s when I knew it was only a matter of time.”
It wasn’t betrayal-Smith respects Kelce too much for that. But the message was clear. If Mahomes had the trust of the locker room’s loudest voice, the torch wasn’t just going to be passed; it was going to be ripped from Smith’s hands.
Kelce has never hidden how he feels about his quarterback. He once compared catching passes from Mahomes to catching from Michael Jordan, telling CBS Sports in 2023, “You just know you’re witnessing greatness.” That bond wasn’t built overnight-it started in practice, when Mahomes was still the kid with the big arm waiting his turn.
Smith remembers it well. “Pat was electric. Trav loved him. Once those two started making plays, my days were numbered,” he said.
Respect, Not Resentment
Even so, Smith doesn’t sound bitter. He insists that Mahomes’ humility made the transition easier.“Pat came in humble, ready to work. No ego, no prima donna attitude. He gave respect, he got respect. That’s why it worked,”Smith said.
Mahomes has echoed the sentiment. “Alex was the best mentor I could’ve had,” he told ESPN in 2020. “He showed me how to be a pro.”
That mentorship, combined with Kelce’s backing, made Kansas City’s quarterback transition smoother than anyone could have imagined. Instead of splintering the locker room, it bonded them. And the results-three Super Bowl rings and counting-speak for themselves.
Smith may jokingly say it’s Kelce’s fault that his Chiefs career ended, but if anything, he seems proud to have been part of the handoff. Kansas City went from playoff frustration to dynasty-and it all started with the right people buying in at the right time.
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