Don’t Ask Donna Kelce About Taylor Swift

Photo-Illustration: by The Cut; Photos: Getty Images

Just a quick poll here: Does your partner’s mom know what you’re doing for Thanksgiving? If you’re in a serious relationship, I would think that the answer is yes. So why is it that Donna Kelce got kind of weird when asked if Taylor Swift would be joining her family for the holiday? Roll the tape.

Mama Kelce was on the Today show sharing a recipe for marshmallows wrapped in crescent rolls (it was Pillsbury spon) when host Craig Melvin asked about her family’s Thanksgiving plans. “I am going to be at a football game. Travis is playing the day after Thanksgiving. You know, football is always the holidays. It’s football’s family,” she said, seemingly caught off guard.

Kelce said that there were no plans for a big dinner with the family and that they were “just going to be at the football game.” Obviously, the follow-up question was: Is Taylor Swift going to be at Thanksgiving?

“Don’t think so. She’s kinda busy right now, she still has her tour to do,” Kelce said.

Now, could Kelce’s answer be read as a mother protecting the privacy of her son’s mega-famous girlfriend? Of course. However, paired with the way Kelce spoke about Taylor earlier this year at the premiere of Grotesquerie … it’s interesting.

In September, Kelce was asked what her favorite thing about Taylor was. It’s a question that can easily be answered by saying, “She’s just so fun!” Instead, Kelce said, “Yeah, I don’t really … You know, it’s still new.” Taylor and Travis had been dating for over a year at that point.

Who knows, maybe Taylor — someone who loves both planning and celebrations — is just “kinda busy right now” and hasn’t nailed down her Thanksgiving schedule yet. (Though for what it’s worth, the Eras Tour is actually off that week, so Taylor is free to hang out.) Maybe Kelce has the family group chat muted and doesn’t know (or care) if Taylor’s coming to the game or not. Whatever the case may be, it’s refreshing to see someone have a neutral-ish opinion of Taylor Swift. And for it to be her boyfriend’s mom? Well, that’s just fun.