Mark Andrews commends Travis Kelce for 'raising the bar' with Taylor Swift relationship

For the past 11 seasons, Travis Kelce has set the standard for tight ends around the NFL. Now, the Kansas City Chiefs star is raising the bar when it comes to relationships — or, at least, rumored ones.

Of course we’re talking about Kelce and Taylor Swift, who has attended three of the last four Chiefs games. The NFL community has taken notice of the blossoming relationship, with Baltimore Ravens tight end Mark Andrews even questioned about it Friday.

“That’s an exciting thing,” Andrews said, via Brian Wacker of The Baltimore Sun. “He’s been raising the bar for a long time.”

Turns out, just about everyone is a fan of the Kelce-Swift romance, including the NFL and TV networks. Thanks to several camera shots of the pop superstar inside a suite, a record amount of people tuned in to NBC to watch the Week 4 “Sunday Night Football” matchup between the Chiefs and New York Jets. In total, the Chiefs’ 23-20 victory over the Jets garnered an average of 27 million viewers, the most-watched Sunday show since Super Bowl LVII in February. Viewership peaked at more than 29 million viewers during the second quarter.

The biggest jump in viewership compared to previous “Sunday Night Football” games took place among teen girls (age 12-17) — a 53% spike from the season-to-date average. In simplest terms, the Swift effect is real. No one can deny the impact Swift and her fans (Swifties) have had on the NFL’s bottom line, as well as Kelce’s.

Kelce’s No. 87 jersey has seen a 400% increase in sales and he has gained more than 300,000 followers on social media. He now owns a top-5 selling jersey in the NFL after the bump from Swifties across the country.

Travis Kelce goes off in front of Taylor Swift

Kelce, the two-time Super Bowl champion, had his best game of the season in the 19-8 Week 5 victory over the Denver Broncos on “Thursday Night Football.” The 34-year-old hauled in a season-high nine receptions for 124 yards.

“He’s kind of one of those guys you can give freedom because he knows this offense like the back of his hand,” Mahomes said of Kelce after the game. “In zone, he can work the middle of the field. It hurts some of our deep game, but at the same time, whenever you have a guy like that, that can work in the middle of the field, it helps out a ton.”

Kelce’s stellar performance came in front of Swift, who watched on alongside Kelce’s mom, Donna, and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes‘ wife, Brittany.