The past two weeks have seen the NFL wholly embrace the pop-culture crossover that has come with the reported relationship between Taylor Swift and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. After all, Swift’s presence at the Chiefs’ games against the Bears and Jets meant a major ratings boost for networks.
It’s an opportunity to attract new fans, so it all makes sense — even if Kelce said the league was overdoing it.
So in the lead-up to Kansas City’s Week 5 game at the Vikings, CBS (and its execs) were likely hoping that the global music superstar would make an appearance in Minneapolis at U.S. Bank Stadium.
But come Sunday, it became apparent that Swift wasn’t making the trip this time. And CBS play-by-play announcer Jim Nantz went ahead and made that announcement to viewers in the first quarter.
"Seven words I thought would never leave my lips in my career: Taylor Swift is not at the game… She was questionable all week, but it looks like it's officially inactive. "- Jim Nantz pic.twitter.com/En7iKAoBjb
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) October 8, 2023
Nantz went on to say that he saw some “heart-broken” fans in the stands as they learned that Swift wasn’t in attendance to watch her maybe-boyfriend play against the Vikings. But you do have to give credit to CBS for addressing Swift’s attendance early on in the broadcast. It’s a story that has dominated the conversation about the league, and Nantz did a good job by having some fun with the announcement.
He even left open the possibility of her taking in the Chiefs’ Week 7 game against the Chargers, which is, of course, slated to be on CBS.