Travis Kelce got real about his recent “trash” football game and — spoiler — it has nothing to do with Taylor Swift

We never blame a woman for what a man does in his job. As always.

Travis Kelce hasn't been playing his best football for the Kansas City Chiefs lately, and now he's realized why. Spoiler: It's not his girlfriend's fault.

On a recent episode of “New Heights,” the podcast he co-hosts with his brother Jason, who retired from the Philadelphia Eagles at the end of last season, Kelce admitted, “I played like garbage.”

People who are more interested in sports can tell you in detail what that means (he should catch more and run more, I think? Patrick Mahomes explains it better).

“Everyone saw my decline in the fourth quarter,” an exasperated Kelce admitted, assuring fans, “I’ll get there, don’t worry.”

Travis Kelce is a tight end, which is a receiving position – something I should have explained to myself when my mom called him a receiver and I said, “No, Mom, he's a tight end,” and she said, “Lizzie, “A tight end is a receiving position,” so that was humbling.

Kelce blamed his questionable performance on “trying to do too much.” Without apologizing, he noted, “The way the defense is playing us right now, I'm not getting many chances.”

He said that despite the Chiefs' perfectly acceptable win-loss record so far this season, everyone is looking to step up.

“Everyone just optimizes their game in the right direction…. You’re going to have these ups and downs throughout the season,” he said.