Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce sparked buzz with his recent GQ cover and photoshoot, featuring scenes like wrestling an alligator and rising from swamp water in a construction vest. While some critics questioned the masculinity of the images, podcaster Brett Cooper defended them on her show on August 14, 2025, calling them a fresh take on modern Americana.GQ's September issue is titled "America's Sweetheart: Travis Kelce". Among the images, one shows the NFL star shirtless, holding a python and wearing ripped jeans; another features him in waist-high water, wearing waders and a colossal Hermès bag. While the styling leans avant-garde, Cooper insists the aesthetic aligns with the outlet's tradition of pushing boundaries.Cooper dismissed the idea that the photoshoot undermines Kelce's masculinity."High fashion has always been weird," she said. "I actually think that, as weird as it is, him wrangling pythons and alligators and emerging from the water in a construction outfit, I actually feel like that is about as Americana as a magazine like GQ would go right now."Brett Cooper on Travis Kelce's GQ shoot: "At least he's not in a dress"Brett Cooper emphasized that, in contrast to past male covers that featured dresses or had overt, androgynous styling, such as Pharrell’s GQ photoshoot with a dress or Harry Styles’s Vogue cover, Travis Kelce’s shoot tended more toward themes of rugged adventure."Most of these magazine covers are very, very strange. And for the past few years, they have been even more emasculating and feminine and gay than this is," she stated. "Like, I would much prefer to have Travis Kelce wrangling an alligator, coming out of the water in a construction suit or cowboy hat, whatever he is doing, than the insane stuff that we have seen for the last couple of years." View this post on Instagram Instagram PostCooper’s defense hinges on the idea that masculinity isn’t monolithic."This is not an attack on masculinity. It is not a mockery of masculinity...He's wrangling an alligator. What more do you want from him? He's like a huge NFL football player. And also, guys, at least he's not in a dress."She noted that GQ's style has historically blended high-concept artistic works with celebrity profiles, and Kelce's spread fits within that lineage.As Kelce approaches his 13th NFL season, he has consistently balanced football and entertainment via his New Heights podcast and acting roles. His interview shows this introspective side of himself as he shared about coming back to football after the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl and how his public perception has changed. "I’m starting to phase out of wanting to be known as the party guy," he told the outlet.Travis Kelce's GQ piece came out on the same day his girlfriend, Taylor Swift, announced her 12th album, The Life of a Showgirl.