Shannon Sharpe brutally labelled Travis Kelce as ‘lazy’ after the Chiefs star’s costly drop during their defeat against the Eagles.
Kelce suffered disaster in the fourth quarter of their Super Bowl rematch against Philadelphia, with the tight end dropping a potential touchdown catch into the hands of an Eagles defender for an interception early in the fourth quarter.
It proved a gut-wrenching moment for Kansas City, who slumped to a 20-17 loss on their own turf to go 0-2 amid a disaster start to the season.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes since came forward and took responsibility for the crucial moment – however Sharpe still decided to lament Kelce’s role in the incident.
Speaking on his ‘Nightcap’ podcast, Sharpe said: ‘Their receivers, they got guys, Ocho. No matter what you say, they have got guys. Juju (Smith-Schuster) is a guy. Hollywood Brown has become a guy. They are guys. Kelce has been lazy.
‘He’s getting lazy with his head and he’s getting lazy with his eyes. He knows in that area of the field, he has to snap his head. He knows, I don’t know why he is so lazy with his head. There is nobody inside, and Blankenship has got you manned.
Chiefs star Travis Kelce has been labelled ‘lazy’ after his performance against the Eagles
Shannon Sharpe ripped into the Kansas City tight end after the underwhelming display
‘Why are you so lazy? Your head, you have got to snap it around, you know that. And you took points off the board. In other words, you don’t get points and they go down and they get points.
‘Ocho, they have got guys. I don’t care how great Mahomes is, he’s not overcoming that. I keep telling you, (Isiah) Pacheco is a guy. You can find 50 guys in the NFL that can do exactly what Isiah Pacheco can do.
‘Kareem Hunt is past his prime, he’s just a guy. They have got guys. There is nothing special about anybody on that team right now offensively other than Patrick Mahomes.’
Though it was Kelce’s error dominating headlines, Chiefs QB Mahomes later said that it was his throw was to blame for the interception.
‘I just threw it a tad too early,’ Mahomes said after the game. ‘Just trying to put it on his body low before that hole player got there.
‘I think if I can put it more on his body, and not so far out in front of him, then he can catch it, take the hit, and get in the end zone.’
He then continued: ‘You wanna put it low, just more on his body. Whenever you’re in those tight quarters like that you wanna give it to them, especially a bigger guy, more on his body where he can catch it [and] brace for that contact.
‘We knew the hole player would be looking for him. He was breaking to kind of make a hit and it was just unfortunate the ball bounced up in the air and went right to him.’
Late in the game, Kelce bobbled a surefire touchdown catch – turning it into an interception
The Chiefs star was seen ripping off his helmet in frustration after the crucial mistake
Mahomes has now suffered three straight defeats with the Chiefs for the very first time, having also been toppled by the Eagles in last season’s Super Bowl.
Despite reaching that grim milestone, the 29-year-old enjoyed a satisfying day at the office on an individual note after going 16-for-29 and passing for 189 yards, one touchdown and an interception.
He also carried the ball seven times for 66 yards and a score on the ground as the Chiefs failed to avenge their thrashing in New Orleans seven months ago.
Kelce, meanwhile, was their leading receiver with 61 yards for four receptions.
