Travis Kelce has regularly heaped praise on the Cincinnati Bengals, who suffered a surprise defeat to the New England Patriots one week before traveling to Arrowhead Stadium

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The Bengals may have started their NFL season on a low note after suffering a surprise loss to the New England Patriots, but Travis Kelce knows he and the Kansas City Chiefs will have their work cut out when Cincinnati arrives at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday.

Kelce has never shied away from commending the Bengals ever since Cincinnati ousted Kansas City in the 2022 postseason. But the Chiefs enacted revenge the following year, securing a 23-20 win in the 2023 AFC Championship Game to advance to Super Bowl LVII.

Despite the fiery trash talk that was exchanged back-and-forth in leadup and during the game, Kelce insisted that he had nothing but respect for the Bengals. “I don’t want this to get away from how much I respect the Bengals, the coaches, the players on that team,” he said on an episode of the “New Heights” podcast.

“That offense is unbelievable. Joe Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins… All those guys across the board on that side are spectacular. They all could be Pro Bowlers.

“And at the same time, the defense… I don’t know if I’ve played a defense that plays more together than that team. They all know their role. They absolutely play their gaps. They play their zones. They communicate well. They tackle well as a team. It’s hard to find a weakness when you’re playing them.”

This isn’t the only time that Kelce has heaped praise on one of his team’s most fearsome AFC rivals. Addressing the Chiefs’ Week 2 matchup against the Bengals, the star tight end said back in May: “We’re going to have our hands full. Joey B’s looking bigger, stronger; looking like a ——- beast.

 
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“It will be interesting to see what they do with their offensive weapons. They lost Joe Mixon. I know they gained Mike Gesicki – my fellow tight end.”

Discussing the uncertainty surrounding the Bengals wide receivers at the time – Tee Higgins and Ja’Marr Chase were both looking to be awarded long-term deals and still are – Kelce added: “It’ll be interesting what they do with the wideouts… It doesn’t matter, as long as Joey B’s out there it’s going to be a hell of a game because they got great defense and great coaches.”

Speaking of Burrow, Kelce said of the quarterback: “Every time I hang around him or every time I catch up with him, man, you love the guy even more. He’s one of the best competitors out there. Cool hand Joe, man. Joe Shiesty.

“He’s one of the smoothest football players. Just the most calm, cool, collected. [One of the] great competitors in the game. When you meet him, man, he’s ultimately just a great dude.”

The Bengals will hope to live up to Kelce’s praises following a disheartening 16-10 loss to the Patriots, who are actively in the midst of a rebuild. The Chiefs, meanwhile, earned a hard-fought 27-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens at home to begin their season.