‘That Card Is Disgusting’: Travis Kelce Reflects on His Topps Chrome Rookie
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Don’t ask Travis Kelce to sign a certain rookie card for you because he might set it on fire.
On the latest episode of New Heights from brothers Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end had choice words for one of his rookie cards when responding to a fan.
In the segment, a commenter posts a picture of a Travis Kelce 2013 Topps Chrome Base rookie card that he had signed in person. The photo features Kelce posing as if he’s making a catch, though it also shows him making an odd face with his mouth open.
The New Heights podcast and the highlighted segment contain explicit language.
“How did this end up being your rookie card?” Jason Kelce asked.
“I f------ hate that card,” Travis Kelce responds. “That card is disgusting, dude.”
The Kelce brothers react to the card with a short conversation about the photo and the circumstances behind it. Travis Kelce says it was taken at the NFL Draft Combine and he notes that, as a Nike athlete, it’s the only time he’s worn Under Armour.
Card manufacturers will often have shoots at events like the Draft Combine to get early photos for many of the athletes they may use. Depending on the release window for a product, rookie cards may feature photos from these shoots rather than game action.
“It looks like you’re trying to catch the ball with your mouth,” Jason Kelce jokes. “It’s just uncalled for, man,” Travis Kelce adds.
Travis Kelce goes on to add that he doesn’t want to sign the card anymore,
Travis Kelce hates his 2013 Topps Chrome rookie card.
New Heights
“Anybody ever asks me to sign that card again, I’ll set it in flames right there in front of you.”
Kelce has a variety of rookie cards from the 2013 season, though the flagship Topps and Topps Chrome releases both feature the photo.
He also has a 2013 Panini Prizm rookie that shows him in a Chiefs uniform, though it’s not an action shot. There are also cards from Crown Royale, Prestige, Rookies & Stars, Score, and SP Authentic, though none of them feature inspiring photographs.
Unfortunately, for players and collectors alike, some cards simply have bad photographs, and Travis Kelce’s rookies are among them.
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