The NFL imposed a fine on Teair Tart of the Los Angeles Chargers for slapping Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs during their season opener. The fine for this first striking offense amounts to $12,172.
Tart and Kelce were involved in a scuffle in the third quarter of their Week 1 encounter. After Kelce pushed Tart, the defensive tackle responded with a slap to Kelce’s helmet. Open-handed strikes do not lead to ejection, so Tart only received an unnecessary roughness penalty during the gameplay.
“I don’t comprehend that rule,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid stated. “I guess it’s open hand, fist, whatever, I don’t know. I don’t know what their ruling was on that. But he definitely got hit in the head pretty hard, whether it was an open fist or a closed fist.”
Tart’s blow to Kelce’s head can be viewed in this tweet. Tart’s slap — Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) September 6, 2025.
After the game, Tart hinted at the incident on social media, posting an Instagram caption that taunted Kelce’s relationship with pop star Taylor Swift. The Week 1 game marked Tart’s first start in two seasons with the Chargers, finishing with one tackle and two batted passes. The Chargers won the game 27-21 against the Chiefs.
