Getty

KANSAS CITY, MO – OCTOBER 06: Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs spoke with head coach Andy Reid of the Kansas City Chiefs on the bench in the third quarter against the Indianapolis Colts at Arrowhead Stadium on October 6, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images)

Even after the Kansas City Chiefs secured their first win of the season Sunday, discussion has not calmed down about what happened on the sidelines during their unconvincing 22-9 win over the hapless New York Giants, when coach Andy Reid and veteran tight end Travis Kelce, both certain future Hall of Famers, got into a shouting match, presumably over Kelce’s continued halfhearted effort on the field.

What Reid had to say about Kelce is his latest comment on the incident on Wednesday, however, was bizarre — though it seems the 67-year-old now in his 27th NFL season as an NFL head coach may have intended the comment in jest.

Reid Gets One Important Thing About Kelce Wrong

While Kelce has yet to comment publicly on the sideline spat, Reid has attempted to laugh it off, at least when talking to the media. Reid even went so far as to deflect any speculation about a personal issue between the two by praising Kelce’s “passion.”

“I’m OK with that. We didn’t have enough of it in the second quarter. It wasn’t where we needed it to be, so, within reason, he knows when to back off the pedal and knows when to push it too,” Reid told reporters immediately following Sunday’s Chiefs victory. “That’s the part I love about him. The guy is all-in. Sometimes, I have to be the policeman. He’s an emotional guy.”

Reid also offered an explanation for Kelce’s motivation, at least in the coach’s view. But it was a strange one for the simple reason that it simply is incorrect.

“Listen, he’s an emotional guy,” said the coach. “He’s Irish.”

Kelce Irish? Spoiler Alert: He’s Not

Reid was hired by the Chiefs in 2013, after 14 seasons coaching the Philadelphia Eagles. That same season was also Kelce’s rookie year, after he was drafted in the third round that year out of Cincinnati. Reid, then, has been the only NFL head coach Kelce has ever known.

After 13 years together, Reid should perhaps have gotten to know his star tight end a bit better — because while Kelce may indeed be “an emotional guy,” it is not because he is Irish. Because he isn’t.

In fact, Kelce like many Americans can trace his ethnic heritage back to several European countries> But in January on his New Heights podcast, Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce revealed that they have strong roots in the Balkan country of Croatia.

In an appearance on the podcast by Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, in which the WNBA 2024 Rookie of the Year said that she had recently visited Croatia — and enthusiastically endorsed the country.

Kelce Brothers Proud of Croatian Heritage

“We found out recently we are Croatian. We didn’t even know,” said podcast co-host Jason Kelce, the older brother of Travis Kelce and a retired Philadelphia Eagles center. “That’s why I was so excited when you said Croatia.”

“Yes, I got some (Croatian) blood,” Travis Kelce added.

The Kelce brothers can also trace their roots back to ancestors in England, Scotland, Poland and the Czech Republic.

But neither has mentioned any Irish heritage.

If 13 years with Travis Kelce was insufficient time to get to know him well enough to understand his ethnic background, Reid also spent two years as Jason Kelce’s coach — in the older Kelce’s rookie year of 2011, and in 2012 which was Reid’s final season leading the Eagles.

Jonathan Vankin JONATHAN VANKIN is an award-winning journalist and writer who now covers baseball and other sports for Heavy.com. He twice won New England Press Association awards for sports feature writing. He was a sports editor and writer at The Daily Yomiuri in Tokyo, Japan, covering Japan Pro Baseball, boxing, sumo and other sports. More about Jonathan Vankin