The Kansas City Chiefs know what’s coming in Week 2. A clash at Arrowhead that will be more like a rematch with the Philadelphia Eagles, the team that crushed them 40-22 in Super Bowl LIX. That loss has been pinned to every wall inside the Chiefs’ locker room. And if Kansas City is going to flip the script, Travis Kelce has to be at the center of it.

His season debut against the Chargers didn’t show much—a 37-yard touchdown and two catches for 47 yards. Adding to the sting, three snaps into that same game, Kelce was part of the collision that left rookie wideout Xavier Worthy with a dislocated shoulder. With Worthy out and Rashee Rice suspended for five games, the Chiefs have no choice but to lean heavier on their veteran tight end.

Kelce himself has faced the Eagles three times during the regular season and twice in the Super Bowl. But now with Kansas City set to face them for a fifth straight season, the margin for error is gone. And when he sat down with his brother Jason on their New Heights podcast alongside Rob Riggle and Kevin Hart, Kelce made his message impossible to miss. The warning is clear: the locker room can’t afford another collapse. “Motivated football team. A motivated football team going in against the team we just got beat by in the Super Bowl. A team that we feel like we didn’t play our best. And coming off a week where we didn’t feel like we played our best. So we got to fix a lot of things, both offensively and defensively.”

That honesty cuts straight to what went wrong against Los Angeles. Kansas City’s offensive line let Patrick Mahomes take two sacks, eight QB hits, and endured ten penalties—four of them on right tackle Jawaan Taylor. At one point, Kelce’s frustration boiled over; after another false start, he walked over to Taylor, gave him a few choice words, and even headbutted him to spark energy.

Kelce knows the Chiefs can’t afford that kind of sloppy play again, especially against Philadelphia. “We got to get this thing fucking going, man. We got to get this train fucking running a little bit more. And the biggest thing for me is energy, man. We got to come out with fucking energy. It’s going to be fun to feel that atmosphere. But unless the players are on the field doing that, Arrowhead’s not going to be a fun atmosphere, man.”

That urgency reflects reality. Mahomes fought tooth and nail in Week 1, throwing for 258 yards and a touchdown. Leading scoring drives on each of Kansas City’s final five possessions, and keeping hope alive with a 49-yard strike to Hollywood Brown. But without Worthy, and with Steve Spagnuolo’s defense leaking for 394 yards against Justin Herbert, the Chiefs looked nothing like the Super Bowl champions of two years ago and fell to Chargers with 27-21 defeat.

Travis Kelce admits costly collision that knocked Out Xavier Worthy

The Chiefs’ season opener in Brazil carried an early gut punch. Just three snaps into the game against the Chargers, Kelce collided with Xavier Worthy. Leaving the second-year wideout sidelined with a shoulder injury. Head coach Andy Reid has said Worthy is “day to day,” in his recovery though fears of a dislocation had fans holding their breath. Kelce, meanwhile, didn’t shy away from responsibility on his New Heights podcast: “I wasn’t ready that first drive. I ran into one of my guys and took him out of the game.”

Kelce broke down the play with brutal honesty. “I’m supposed to be running my route for Worthy. It’s frustrating for me. I was kind of trying to set up my guy to get in position, and it all kind of happened pretty quick. I’ve just got to be better, man. I’m 13 years in the league; there’s no excuse for me running into my own guys like that. Worthy had his guy beat; we’re out the gate, and the game starts completely different.” For a 35-year-old leader whose game is built on precision and awareness, it was an uncharacteristic mistake with massive consequences.

And while Worthy’s timeline remains unclear, Kelce underscored just how much the Chiefs’ offense depends on the former first-round pick. “I am hoping we get him back as fast as possible because he means so much to this team. One of the fastest guys in the league—and speed kills in this league—and now they don’t have to worry about that. I owe my guy big time. X knows it. I felt like s***.” For Kansas City, adjusting without Worthy is going to be hard.