Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and current ESPN sports analyst Troy Aikman is afraid he could be in some serious hot water with the Swifties.
On Monday, October 7, during a Monday Night Football showdown between the Kansas City Chiefs and the New Orleans Saints, Aikman, 57, gave Taylor Swift an impromptu nickname on-air after her boyfriend, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, made a big play during the second quarter.
“The Mrs. likes it,” Aikman said and after the camera panned to Swift, 34, who attended the game at Arrowhead Stadium after missing the Chiefs’ last two away games.
“You know they’re not married, right?” his broadcast partner, Joe Buck, quickly noted.
“I’m sure I’m in trouble for saying that,” Aikman said.
Prior to kickoff, Kelce’s brother, retired Philadelphia Eagle center Jason Kelce, addressed rumors that Travis’ relationship with the pop star is negatively impacting his football game.
“Now he’s enjoying his life very publicly,” Jason, 36, said. “Everything he does, and everything our family does, is very much out there. And that’s just the nature of the way it is right now. Listen, Trav — this is a guy that’s always found a way to show up in the peak physical shape.”
“I know optics are that he is all over the place — and that’s not just optics that’s reality,” Jason continued. “But he still keeps the main thing the main thing. Football has always been the main thing in Trav’s life.”
In addition to the current NFL season and his ongoing, public romance with Swift, the three-time Super Bowl champion is coming off a fresh, nine-figure deal for his hit podcast “New Heights,” which he cohosts with his big brother.
During the offseason, Travis also filmed the game show Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity? and starred on Ryan Murphy’s new FX series, Grotesquerie.
As for Travis’ relationship, a source previously confirmed to Us Weekly that the pair are still “going strong” despite Swift missing two games earlier this season.
“They’re spending as much time together as possible while balancing their careers and individual responsibilities — his game and her music empire, along with personal projects,” the insider exclusively told Us on October 1.
“They’re choosing not to dwell on the noise, focusing instead on staying true to themselves and being happy,” the source continued. “They simply shrug off the stories. They see it as just another example of the press lifting someone up only to tear them down.”
