Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce didn’t hesitate to call out Cincinnati mayor Aftab Pureval during a postgame interview, and in a tweet, Pureval acknowledged: “Yeah. Deserved that.”
“Congrats to KC on a well-fought win, and good luck in Arizona,” Pureval continued in his tweet Sunday night. “Proud of our fans and our @bengals for the energy all year. Who Dey!”
Kelce joined Patrick Mahomes for an interview as the AFC Championship game’s postgame ceremony unfolded, and Kelce proceeded to blast Pureval after extending the Lamar Hunt Trophy for fans at Arrowhead Stadium to admire.
“I got some wise words for that Cincinnati Mayor,” Kelce told CBS’ Jim Nantz, channeling a classic Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson phrase. “Know your role and shut your mouth, ya jabroni.”
In a separate interview with CBS sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson, Kelce cut off Mahomes and yelled, “Burrowhead my ass. It’s Mahomes’ house.”
Earlier in the week, Pureval tweeted a city proclamation that referenced “Burrowhead Stadium” and an awkward line about Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow — who entered Sunday undefeated against Mahomes in his career — being “asked by officials to take a paternity test confirming whether or not he’s [Mahomes’] father.” That caused people, including Mahomes’ wife, Brittany, and Kansas City mayor Quinton Lucas, to fire back at Pureval.
“I hear the mayor of Cincinnati has tried to bring some smoke that’s weak as hell,” Lucas said. “No need to respond. KC’s got class. Cincinnati has Jerry Springer and no rings. See them Sunday.”
Kansas City defeated the Bengals, 23-20, behind a 45-yard Harrison Butker field goal in the final seconds, capping a drive that featured a costly penalty by Joseph Ossai. It gave the Chiefs 15 extra yards from where they were positioned at the Cincinnati 42-yard line, and the call moved them within Butker’s range to prevent overtime.
Kelce caught seven passes from Mahomes — who played despite suffering a high-ankle sprain in the divisional round — for 87 yards and a touchdown.
The Chiefs will now face the Eagles, who defeated the 49ers in the NFC Championship game, in Super Bowl 2023 on Feb. 12. Kelce will face his older brother, Jason, who plays center for Philadelphia.