Pop sensation Taylor Swift has been one of the biggest storylines of the Chiefs’ season, whether you like it or not.
Some feel she added an unnecessary distraction as Kansas City attempts to win back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Others celebrate that she has brought unprecedented attention to the NFL from demographics that the league otherwise would have never reached.
As the Chiefs gear up for their Super Bowl 58 matchup against the 49ers, the last QB to win a Super Bowl in San Francisco, Steve Young, believes Kansas City has turned Swift into the team’s greatest “superpower.”
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What did Steve Young say about Taylor Swift and the Chiefs?
Young joined ESPN’s Kevin Clark at Super Bowl Media Week to break down the matchup, among other storylines. Swift, of course, came up in conversation, and Young didn’t hesitate to share his thoughts on the situation.
The three-time Super Bowl champion was pessimistic about how all the attention around Swift would affect the Chiefs, but he has since pivoted his stance in a major way.
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“Taylor Swift coming to the games and dating Travis [Kelce] put a huge burden on the team,” Young began. “It wasn’t anyone’s fault. It’s just the nature of the whole thing. It’s a distraction. And you could see the weight of that in the first half of the season.
“What I saw toward the end of the season is now an ownership of that distraction to where it’s now a superpower,” Young said.
Clark responded, asking, “Does a distraction, like Taylor being in the box, actually seep into the locker room?”
“100 percent,” Young said emphatically.
“When you’re that famous, everyone’s now twitterpated. Players, equipment men, coaches, staff, locker room attendants, everyone’s twitterpated. It creates its own energy and drama and distraction. It’s inevitable.
“The idea that you didn’t feel that weight on that team is just not a reality. I really feel like why they’re coming into this game in a really powerful position is handling that unique challenge. … She’s part of the family now and that’s a powerful place. … I think they’re much more dangerous today, for this Super Bowl, because of that. I thought they were less dangerous in the first half because of that.”
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You can watch Young’s full response below, which begins at the four-minute mark.
Interesting perspective from Steve Young on THIS IS FOOTBALL about this Chiefs team: how they got better on offense as the season went along, Mahomes, Kelce and why he thought Taylor Swift was a “distraction” in the first half of the year and why she’s now their “superpower.” pic.twitter.com/XfOgHxnAf0
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) February 7, 2024
If it were up to Young, it sounds like Swift deserves a Super Bowl ring if the Chiefs win the whole thing.
