Teair Tart Fined $12k for Slapping Travis Kelce

The NFL fined Teair Tart for slapping Travis Kelce during the week one game in Brazil.¹ The NFL rules state that the penalty for a first offense of striking another player is $12,172.² During the third quarter, Kelce shoved Tart, and Tart slapped Kelce’s helmet.³ After the altercation, there was a 15-yard unnecessary roughness penalty.⁴ Because Tart made “open-hand contact,” he was not ejected.⁵ On the other hand, if Tart had a “closed fist” or a “punch,” he would have been ejected.⁶

Andy Reid, the Kansas City coach, told reporters that he was “confused about why Tart wasn’t ejected.”⁷ Reid stated, “’I don’t understand that rule. I guess it’s open-hand, fist, whatever, I don’t know. I don’t know what their decision was on that. But he definitely got hit in the head pretty hard, whether it was an open fist or a closed fist.’”⁸

Following the altercation, Tart made a post on Instagram that was likely a jab at Kelce and his fiancée, Taylor Swift.⁹ He posted multiple game day pictures and a video at the end.¹⁰ The video included a movie clip of an individual slapping another with powder on their hands.¹¹ Tart’s caption said: “I’m too swift with it even in Brazil.”¹² In week fifteen, the Los Angeles Chargers will play the Kansas City Chiefs again.¹³ We will see if Tart and Kelce can play against each other without another altercation.

This raises an issue of public policy. We have seen other unsportsmanlike conduct recently, such as Jalen Carter spitting on Dak Prescott.¹⁴ The NFL announced that Carter will forfeit his game check of $57,222 as punishment.¹⁵ Prior to this season, the NFL made a statement emphasizing good sportsmanship in terms of respect for opponents.¹⁶ Troy Vincent, the NFL’s Executive Vice President of Football Operations, stated, “‘There’s no place in the game to be standing over your opponent. There’s no place in the game to have violent gestures. That’s not the game of football.'”¹⁷ This video was sent to the teams.¹⁸ Football is a high-contact sport, but it is important for the players to be respectful to one another.

1. Kris Rhim, Source: Chargers’ Teair Tart fined for slapping Travis Kelce, ESPN (Sept. 12, 2025) https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46237382/chargers-teair-tart-fined-slapping-travis-kelce ↩︎
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14. Around the NFL Staff, NFL views Jalen Carter ejection for spitting on Dak Prescott as one-game suspension already served, NFL (Sept. 9, 2025) https://www.nfl.com/news/nfl-fines-eagles-dt-jalen-carter-57-222-for-spitting-on-cowboys-qb-dak-prescott ↩︎
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16. Associated Press, NFL to push sportsmanship, crack down on violent, lewd gestures, ESPN (Aug. 21, 2025) https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/46041802/nfl-push-sportsmanship-crack-violent-lewd-gestures ↩︎
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Featured Image: Skyler Caruso, Chargers Player Who Slapped Travis Kelce Continues to Troll Him with Taylor Swift Reference, People (Sept. 8, 2025) https://people.com/chargers-player-who-slapped-travis-kelce-trolls-him-taylor-swift-reference-11805402