"I will f**king die for this city": Travis Kelce recalls tearful plea to $5,150,000,00 franchise to pick him in 2013 NFL draft

On Tuesday, GQ released an exclusive interview with Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce. During this interaction, the 3x Super Bowl champion opened up about a story involving his preparations for the 2013 NFL draft.

Kelce got the opportunity to meet with the then-head coach of the Cleveland Browns, Rob Chudzinski, ahead of the draft. Both the tight end and his retired brother, Jason, were fans of the Browns since their childhood. Thus, Kelce utilized this opportunity to plead to Chudzinski to select him for the $5.15 billion franchise (Forbes).

"I cried in Chud's office and said, 'I will f**king die for this city!" Kelce told GQ. "I literally was in tears. I said, 'I'm sorry I'm getting emotional. I grew up down the street. I would f**king do anything to play for the Cleveland Browns.' He looked at me like I was insane. I don't think he'd ever had somebody just pour out their emotions."

In the end, Kelce ended up going to the Chiefs in the third round with the 63rd pick. However, this worked out in his favor as he established himself as a key part of the roster, winning three Lombardi Trophies.

Last season, the Chiefs were on track to become the first NFL team to three-peat the Lombardi trophy. Unfortunately, they lost to the Eagles in Super Bowl LIX, bringing an end to this dream. Kelce had a disappointing showcase during this finale, as he could muster 39 receiving yards on four catches.

Following this underwhelming showcase, the rumor mill started churning about the TE's potential retirement. However, Travis Kelce decided to return for the 2025 season with the Chiefs.

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Travis Kelce confesses to Hollywood opportunities derailing his Super Bowl three-peat dream

Owing to his popularity, Travis Kelce has also gotten several opportunities in the entertainment industry over the past few years.

However, during his interview with GQ, the 10-time Pro Bowler confessed that this negatively impacted his game on the field.

"Win a Super Bowl is the only goal," Kelce said. "It's the only goal. It's every goal. I think I might have slipped a little because I did have a little bit more focus in trying to set myself up. And opportunities came up where I was excited to venture into a new world of acting and being an entertainer.

"I don't say this as, 'I shouldn't have done it.' I'm just saying that my work ethic is such that I have so much pride in how I do things that I never want the product to tail off, and I feel like these past two years haven't been to my standard. I just have such a motivation to show up this year for my guys."

The Chiefs kick off their 2025 campaign with a game against the Chargers on September 5. It remains to be seen if Travis Kelce and his team can make another Super Bowl run this year.