ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. — The football might be worth $100,000.
Travis Kelce caught a touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes in a playoff game against the Buffalo Bills. The moment was mammoth, two of the greatest at their positions in NFL history, teaming up on the way to winning their third Super Bowl.
Yet there was more to consider when Kelce launched the ball into a section of Buffalo Bills fans in Highmark Stadium, blew them a kiss and gave the heart hands gesture. Up in the Kelce family’s suite, megastar girlfriend Taylor Swift cheered, and big brother Jason Kelce created a viral moment, ripping off his shirt and leaning out into the 14-degree wind chill to howl at the sky, a can of Labatt Blue Light clutched in his right fist.
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The wild highlight has been replayed a gazillion times and likely will again when the Chiefs-Bills rivalry returns Sunday afternoon.
What’s never shown is what happened to the football. It wasn’t cashed for an addition on the house, the kids’ college education or PSLs at the new Bills stadium. No, the leather lottery ticket was chucked back onto the field. The crowd roared at the defiance.
That’s how badly Bills fans loathe the Chiefs.
The disgust runs at subterranean levels, much deeper than that of the players actually competing against each other. You see palsy-walsy interactions before kickoff and during the game. Within minutes of the final whistle, the foes exchange jerseys and pose for photos. They bro hug.
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