Travis Kelce makes a lot of things look easy on the football field, including laterals. The Chiefs’ future Hall of Fame tight end did exactly that during the first half of Monday night’s game against the visiting New Orleans Saints.
The play occurred with the Chiefs facing a third-and-22 from the Saints’ 44-yard-line late in the first half. Patrick Mahomes threw a short pass to Kelce, who quickly veered to his left while heading upfield. Kelce appeared to be looking for someone to toss the ball to before he lateraled the ball to teammate Samaje Perine, who caught Kelce’s lateral in stride before running an additional 15 yards.
Laterals are rarely attempted due to the risk of a fumble and turnover along with it being a difficult play to execute. But Kelce clearly thought the risk was worth it as the Chiefs were trying to add to their 10-7 lead before halftime.
Kelce’s heads-up play went to good use. The Chiefs converted on fourth down on their next play and ended the drive with a Harrison Butker field goal, extending their lead to 13-7.
Along with lauding the play, ESPN color analyst Troy Aikman openly wondered whether or not Kelce’s lateral was planned. What do you think?
Now that you’ve guessed, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid offered clarity just before halftime, saying that it was indeed a designed play.
“We do it every day in practice,” Reid told ESPN’s Lisa Salters.
Regardless, the lateral was an impressive play by Kelce, who was a vocal point in Kansas City’s offense during the first half. In fact, Kelce’s eight catches in the first half were more than half of his entire receptions total (15) during the Chiefs’ first four games of the season.
