Entertainment
Marlon Humphrey Hypes Up Travis Kelce Feud Before Ravens-Chiefs Game
Marlon Humphrey has some bad blood with Travis Kelce going into the 2024/2025 NFL season.
The Baltimore Ravens player, 28, took a joking jab at Kelce, 34, ahead of his team’s season opener game against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday, September 5, while discussing the success of his and Jason Kelce’s “New Heights” podcast.
“I pray for this, to go against him, because he’s tried to take everything from me. He’s tried to take it all from me,” Humphrey cheekily said on the Sunday, September 1, episode of his “Punch Line” podcast when asked whether Travis’ podcast fame acts as motivation for their face-off. “He’s got to pay. He’s got to pay for what he’s done to the podcast space. He’s tried to eliminate us, and honestly, it’s not right.”
Bringing up Travis’s girlfriend, Taylor Swift, Humphrey continued: “I don’t care who he’s dating. … September [5], it will be pod versus pod, and we will see what heights is higher.”
Humphrey went on to note that Travis is “actually a cool dude” off the football field before quipping to his cohost Jack Settleman that the Chiefs tight end is “just football trash.” The athlete also teased that he would ask the Chiefs tight end if he and Swift, 34, could appear on the “Punch Line” podcast.
“That would do us some numbers,” he stated before adding, “Screw them — unless [Taylor] wants to come on, for real.”
News broke late last month that Travis and Jason, 36, had signed a $100 million deal with the podcast studio Wondery for the rights to “New Heights.” According to The Hollywood Reporter, Wondery will acquire global distribution rights to the podcast and its past episodes, and will have the right to create international adaptations of the show.
“We couldn’t be more excited to team up with Wondery for the next phase of ‘New Heights,’” the brothers said in a statement. “We love this show, and the fanbase that has grown with us over the last two seasons. Wondery understands the shared vision and will offer a wealth of experience and resources to take us to ‘New Heights!’ We are going to create some groundbreaking moments together through this partnership. We are thrilled to start Season 3 – see you soon, 92%ers!”
“New Heights” helped start Travis and Swift’s relationship, as Travis discussed trying to give the pop star a friendship bracelet with his number on it at a Kansas City Eras Tour show during a July 2023 episode. Swift later revealed in her December 2023 TIME People of the Year cover story that they connected after his podcast comments went viral, and they were officially dating by the time she attended her first Chiefs game in September 2023.
Swift proceeded to cheer on her boyfriend and his teammates at many of the team’s games, including when they beat the San Francisco 49ers at Super Bowl LVIII in February. Travis, meanwhile, returned the kindness by singing and dancing at many of her international Eras Tour stops, even hopping on stage in London at a June show.
Swift is likely to attend more Chiefs games during this NFL season as she is currently on a two-month break from the Eras Tour. It is unknown whether she will be in attendance at the Chiefs and Ravens’ Thursday matchup at Arrowhead Stadium.