Julian Edelman Stands Up for Travis Kelce and His Poor Reading Skills

The former Patriots star is a real one.

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) talks to the media during Super Bowl LIX Opening Night at Ceasars Superdome. / Stephen Lew-Imagn Images

In this story:

Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce has never been known for his book smarts, but he found himself at the center of some not-very-nice discourse this week after he frankly admitted that he “can’t really read that well.”

Kelce revealed on the latest episode of the Bussin’ With The Boys podcast that the hardest part of hosting Saturday Night Live back in March 2023 was the table read. “The writers’ rooms were fun because you’re just getting pitched ideas,” Kelce said. “The table reading, for a guy that can’t really read that well, it was kind of a f—ed situation.”

Kelce’s comments have since blown up on social media with many coming to his defense, including former NFL rival and New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman.

Edelman reposted an article about Kelce’s reading challenges and simply wrote, “Same,” while tagging Kelce.

Same @tkelce https://t.co/Ud8Dz51EML

— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) July 2, 2025

It’s a sweet show of solidarity from the ex-Pats star, whose small but thoughtful gesture was warmly received by Kelce’s fans and Swifties alike.

Kelce has proven he’s more than just a football player with his off-field pursuits in the media and entertainment industry over the last few years, which has seen him break out his acting chops in a wide array of roles. The Chiefs tight end starred in the FX horror series, Grotesquerie , has a cameo in Happy Gilmore 2 and reportedly landed a lead role in the buddy cop movie, Loose Cannons , which hasn’t started production yet. Kelce is one of 35 athletes and sports figures who have ever hosted SNL, joining the likes of Michael Jordan, Derek Jeter and Tom Brady.

More NFL on Sports Illustrated

KRISTEN WONG

Kristen Wong is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. She has been a sports journalist since 2020. Before joining SI in November 2023, Wong covered four NFL teams as an associate editor with the FanSided NFL Network and worked as a staff writer for the brand’s flagship site. Outside of work, she has dreams of running her own sporty dive bar.

Read More