Did the Kansas City Chiefs say they won't be re-signing Travis Kelce's contract and that they have "had it with the sideshow"? No, that's not true: This claim is from an article on a satirical website known for publishing fabricated content. This website has a disclaimer that reads, "Everything on this website is fiction."
The claim appeared in an article published by The Dunning-Kruger Times on February 12, 2024, titled "The Kansas City Chiefs Won't be Re-Signing Travis Kelce: 'We've Had It With the Side Show'" (archived here). It began:
The Kansas City Chiefs made a surprise announcement earlier that they've decided not to sign Travis Kelce to a new contract.
Users on social media only saw this title, description and thumbnail:
The Kansas City Chiefs Won't be Re-Signing Travis Kelce: "We've Had It With the Side Show"
Thanks for everything, but everyone is expendable.
(Source: dunning-kruger-times.com screenshot taken on Wed Feb 14 14:42:33 2024 UTC)
A Google search (archived here) using the keywords "Kansas City Chiefs" AND "Re-Signing Travis Kelce" AND "We've Had It With the Side Show" produced no results to substantiate this claim.
The article continued:
'While we appreciate what Travis has done here,' said Vice President of Football Operations Joe Barron, 'We also have to look at the big picture. The relationship is ruining the experience for the fans, and they're blaming us.'
A Google search (archived here) for " Kansas City Chiefs Vice President of Football Operations Joe Barron," did not yield any results of a person with that name employed with the team.
Joe Barron was a friend of Christopher Blair, a self-described liberal troll and the creator of The Dunning-Kruger Times. Barron's name is frequently used in Blair's satirical stories as a posthumous tribute.
Further down in the article, it reads:
The team's leadership, including Patrick Mahomes' Spiritual Advisor Chuck, believes that Kelce will be far happier in California or New York-based team.
A Google search (archived here) for "Patrick Mahomes' Spiritual Advisor Chuck" produced no results that prove that Mahomes has a spiritual advisor named Chuck.
The Dunning-Kruger Times
The Dunning-Kruger Times is a satirical website with an about page (archived here) that has the following disclaimer:
About Us
Dunning-Kruger-Times.com is a subsidiary of the 'America's Last Line of Defense' network of parody, satire, and tomfoolery, or as Snopes called it before they lost their war on satire: Junk News
About Satire
Before you complain and decide satire is synonymous with 'comedy':
sat·ire ˈsaˌtī(ə)r noun: The use of humor, irony, exaggeration, OR ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues.
Everything on this website is fiction. It is not a lie and it is not fake news because it is not real. If you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined. Any similarities between this site's pure fantasy and actual people, places, and events are purely coincidental and all images should be considered altered and satirical. See above if you're still having an issue with that satire thing.
The website is named after the Dunning-Kruger effect, a term from a psychology experiment that describes the phenomenon of being ignorant of one's own ignorance. (That experiment has been disputed by a math professor.)
Additional Lead Stories fact checks of claims related to Travis Kelce can be found here.
