Travis Kelce: Jets 'Counted Out' Super Bowl Hero Mecole Hardman
Travis Kelce is undoubtedly pleased that no one told Mecole Hardman that he and the Kansas City Chiefs were never, ever, ever getting back together.
Hardman's name is forever etched in Super Bowl lore ... and green infamy ... after he caught the game-winning touchdown in the extra period of the Chiefs' 25-22 victory over the San Francisco 49ers. Much of the Hardman narrative in the aftermath focused on the fact that he began this season with the New York Jets and his involvement in a championship cause only served to exacerbate the Murphy's Law nature of Gang Green.
Kelce was quick to point out the metropolitan connections, driving the point home in his postgame statements.
'When everybody counted him out, even the Jets counted him out, and we were so excited when he got back in the building because he's the kind of guy that brings everybody together,' Kelce said, per Eric Blume of the Daily Mail. 'He's got that kind of personality."
Hardman, 25, signed with the Jets after spending his first four seasons in Kansas City, which yielded two other championship rings. The Georgia alum failed to generate any lasting role in the Jets' offensive rotation and earned a mere single reception in five appearances.
Kelce referred to Hardman as "one of (his) favorite teammates."
"I couldn't be happier for my guy, man,' Kelce said. "It brought me to tears seeing that he was the man that he was the man that got us this ring. Sometimes the media world can be harsh on a guy."
Kelce indirectly pointed out that Hardman's heroics allowed the receiver to take matters into his own hands: he previously picked up a 52-yard reception that set Kansas City up in the red zone in the early stages of the second quarter but it was immediately negated by a lost Isiah Pacheco fumble.
"He keeps trying to find ways to win," lauded Kelce. "(He) had a huge play for us early on that kind of sparked us, and on top of that, found a way to win the game for us."
The Jets will have to be patient to cash in on their Hardman haul: along with a seventh-round pick, Hardman was sent back to Kansas City in October for a sixth-round choice, one that won't be used until the 2025 selections.
