The Kansas City Chiefs are rolling into the NFL playoffs, currently sitting at 15-1 ahead of their final regular season game against the Denver Broncos on the road. The Chiefs are expected to rest their entire starting lineup for that contest due to the fact that they have already locked up the AFC’s number one seed, securing them a bye in the first round of the playoffs and effectively giving Patrick Mahoems and company three weeks of rest.

Another one of those starters is tight end Travis Kelce, who has shown some signs of his age at times this year but remains one of the NFL’s most lethal weapons out of the tight end position.

Even though his statistics may have diminished somewhat in 2024, Kelce recently proved that his popularity among fans has not, as evidenced by the fact that leads the fan vote for the upcoming 2025 Pro Bowl, with 252,200 votes, per the NFL on X.

Coming in second place was Detroit Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs, followed by Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, and Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff.

Although he’s always been a household name, Kelce’s popularity among fans received a significant uptick around the beginning of last season when his relationship with singer Taylor Swift became publicized, leading to an increase in public interest in both Travis and his brother Jason Kelce.

Can the Chiefs three-peat?
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) looks at his Netflix Christmas GameDay cake after the Chiefs defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers at Acrisure Stadium.Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Chiefs are currently gearing up for a playoff run that they hope ends in a historic three-peat, meaning their third Super Bowl championship in a row.

Kansas City has amassed a record of 15-1 this year by winning games in a variety of ways, including on blocked field goals, doinked-in field goals, and opponent penalties. However, the team has looked more dominant in recent weeks, turning in arguably their most impressive performance of the season in a Christmas Day road demolition of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While Patrick Mahomes may not have put up the Herculean statistics that fans have grown accustomed to this year, he remains the best quarterback in the NFL by a country mile and will cause many a headache for opposing defensive coordinators over the next few weeks.

In any case, the Chiefs’ backups will take the field against the Broncos on Sunday afternoon to close out the regular year.