A kind act Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce did in 2017 has come to light this week in response to some of the hate Kelce has received for his interaction with the Baltimore Ravens kicker before the AFC Championship game.
Carlie Ellett, the wife of Porter Ellett, the Chiefs’ assistant running backs coach, wanted to put a stop to that narrative because “Travis Kelce is a gem for a host of reasons,” she said in a video she posted on TikTok.
In the video, she shared how Kelce went out of his way to do something nice for her husband, who at the time was at the “very bottom of the coaching totem pole” as senior assistant to head coach Andy Reid.
What did Travis Kelce give Chiefs coach Porter Ellett?
Despite her husband’s low coaching status, Kelce and Porter Ellett bonded over their love of shoes, especially Nikes — one of Kelce’s sponsors. At the time, the company had recently released its self-lacing Nike MAG “Back to the Future” shoes.
The two were talking with other Chiefs players about the shoes, and one of the players mentioned that “if anybody should have shoes like that, it should be Porter,” because he only has one arm.
“After this comment, Travis — very quietly — went to (the Chiefs) equipment managers to get Porter’s shoe size,” Carlie Ellett said. “So he quietly went and got Porter’s shoe size, went to his own Nike rep and asked that they send a pair of these ‘Marty McFly’ Nike self-tying shoes for Porter.”
The self-lacing shoes have “a sensor, battery, motor, and cable system that adjusts fit based on an algorithmic pressure equation. When a foot is inserted, the shoe tightens automatically until it senses friction points,” according to WIRED.
“He had them sent to the facility and had them in Porter’s locker, so one day when Porter went down to get changed out for practice, there sitting in the box were the brand new ‘Marty McFly’ self-tying shoes from Travis,” Carlie Ellett said. “No fanfare. He wasn’t asked to do this. He simply took notice of a conversation that was had, knew how much Porter liked Nikes and those unique shoes and got them for him.”
She believes the story is another reason to cheer for the Chiefs in the Super Bowl Sunday.
“If you don’t have a rooting interest in the Super Bowl, 10 out of 10 recommend cheering for Travis Kelce and the Kansas City Chiefs,” she said.
Travis Kelce wears BYU jersey
The shoes aren’t the only gift Kelce has given the Ellett family.
In October, Kelce lost a bet to his BYU-alum teammates and members of the Chiefs coaching staff when the Cougars beat Kelce’s Cincinnati Bearcats. As punishment, he had to wear a BYU jersey while recording his “New Heights” podcast.
Ellett orchestrated the bet with Kelce and got the custom jersey with “Kelce” on the back from Chad Lewis, the university’s associate AD of development and a former BYU and NFL tight end, as the Deseret News previously reported.
The Elletts now own the jersey. After Carlie Ellett asked for it for Christmas, Kelce signed it and gave it back to the Elletts.
Who is Porter Ellett?
Porter Ellett currently serves as the Kansas City Chiefs’ assistant running backs coach. This season was his first season in the position.
From 2020 to 2022, he was the team’s offensive quality control coach and worked with quarterback Patrick Mahomes, the running backs and tight ends, including Kelce.
Prior to that, he spent three seasons as senior assistant to the head coach.
When he was a child, Porter Ellett, who grew up in Loa, Utah, fell out of a moving pickup and damaged several nerves that led to his right arm, rendering his arm immobile. The arm often got in the way, especially while playing basketball, so he had it amputated while he was in high school, according to Y Magazine.
Last season, NFL Films featured Porter Ellett’s story and his role on the coaching staff as Reid’s “left-hand man.”