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Some Kansas City Chiefs‘ preseason traditions outweigh all the others, and none are more important than the “return of the stache.”
Kidding — obviously — but it has become a popular trend for Travis Kelce that fans and analysts have enjoyed in recent years. See for yourself:
The Athletic’s Nate Taylor commented on Kelce’s mustache movement: “Yet again, Travis Kelce is rocking just the mustache for the midway point of training camp.” CBS Sports also called attention to the preseason look on Twitter, to which the fashionable Chiefs star responded with a mustachioed emoji.
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Kelce Calls Guardian Caps ‘Silly’
Speaking of Kelce and “silly” things, the KC superstar had a similar sentiment when asked about the NFL-mandated guardian caps that certain positions have been required to wear during training camp this summer.
“I think the guardian caps are silly,” Kelce told reporters. “We’re just out here wearing mushroom helmets that are doing nothing but adding weight to our heads. Hopefully, we can get rid of those so we don’t have to wear them again.”
Offensive and defensive linemen, linebackers, and tight ends are the positions that have been forced to sport the extra padding on top of their helmets in an effort to reduce the number of concussions suffered during the preseason. The Guardian Cap provides “at least a 10% reduction in severity of impact if one player is wearing it,” according to the NFL, “and at least a 20% reduction in impact if two players in a collision are wearing it.”
Kelce probably isn’t the only player that doesn’t like the 2022 uniform addition but for now, it’s safety first within the NFL community.
Charles Goldman of The Chiefs Wire noted that “part of the NFL’s reasoning behind mandating these caps is to help players form better habits, which could influence safer play during the regular season.”
If the data does end up supporting their positive influence with fewer head injuries around the league when Week 1 rolls around, these silly caps are most likely here to stay. Sorry, Trav.
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Weekend Injury Update
Head coach Andy Reid addressed the media after the August 6 practice, providing an injury report for fans and media members:
[Gary] Jennings has a concussion, he’s in concussion protocol. [Taylor] Stallworth has a knee contusion. [Rashad] Fenton, [Daurice] Fountain and [Lucas] Niang are the same. Fountain actually hurt his finger today [in addition to the groin injury], they’re going to X-ray it [and] MRI it to make sure that they find out what it is.
As a reminder, Fenton (CB) is still working his way back from a shoulder injury and Niang (RT) is recovering from a major knee injury that he suffered toward the end of the 2021 season. Stallworth (DT) was a new addition and the two wide receivers picked up their respective injuries this week in practice.
One player Reid forgot to mention initially was tight end Jody Fortson. Taylor reported that Kelce’s main backup did miss practice once again on August 6.
After suffering the injury on July 30, Fortson’s nagging quad ailment has kept him out a full week of practices so far. Fans and coaches will look forward to hopefully getting the dynamic pass-catcher back on the field next week.
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