Derwin James respects Travis Kelce, but they aren't exactly buddy-buddy

Derwin James' powerbomb of Travis Kelce two years ago still remains in the minds of many Los Angeles Chargers fans. The Chargers would end up losing, but that hit gained James popularity for manhandling one of the league's best players.

The Chargers and Chiefs are headed towards a Sunday night showdown this week and James had some things to say regarding Kelce ahead of their meeting.

"I feel like it's always a great matchup," James said about his faceoffs with Kelce on the Up & Adams show. "We push each other. I know what type of player he is, he knows who I am. We just go out there and just try to compete for our team. I got a lot of respect for him, he's been doing great things for a long time. Can't wait for Sunday night, to give everybody a show."

When asked about if he and Kelce are friendly off of the field, James quickly shut down any type of talk surrounding that.

"Nah, it ain't buddy-buddy, we got respect for each other."

With the way James and the Chargers defense has been playing this season, Kelce and the Chiefs are in for a tough task.

— Enjoy free coverage of the Chargers from Los Angeles Chargers on SI —

More Los Angeles Chargers News:

Chargers’ Jim Harbaugh has another mysterious update on injured CB

Maxx Crosby should find his way to Chargers so he can stop losing his mind

Chargers’ Greg Roman makes admission about gameplans before Week 14 vs. Chiefs

These aren’t the same Chargers the Chiefs beat in Week 4

Barber shares behind-the-scenes photo of Justin Herbert's new haircut