Dating Taylor Swift has been good for Travis Kelce’s heart and his pocketbook. But is the relationship taking a toll on his football career?

On Wednesday night, Ms. Swift, the record-breaking pop star, was featured for the first time on “New Heights,” the podcast co-hosted by Mr. Kelce and his brother Jason. The much-anticipated appearance comes after she did a teaser of the podcast announcing her upcoming album, “The Life of a Showgirl,” to be released on October 3. “This is the record I’ve wanted to make for a very long time,” she said.

The premiere viewing of the podcast drew a high of 1.3 million viewers as Travis Kelce and Ms. Swift appeared on one screen from their home, while Jason Kelce was on another screen wearing a T-shirt with an image of Taylor Swift’s face.

The Kelces and Ms. Swift opened by talking about how Travis got her attention two years ago by pleading on the podcast to “give me a chance” after failing to meet her during her Eras Tour appearance in Kansas City. He attended the concert and was “captivated,” saying it left him with “such a desire to meet you.”

Ms. Swift watched the podcast and admitted she was intrigued. “I thought if this guy isn’t crazy, this is what I’ve been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was a teenager,” she said.

Three months later she was attending her first Kansas City Chiefs game at Arrowhead Stadium. “She blew me away,” he said. “I’d never experienced something so mesmerizing on stage and so real and so beautiful in person.”

The couple held hands for much of the podcast. Travis Kelce called her the “greatest song writer of all-time” and “smartest woman in the world.”

She got emotional midway through the nearly two-hour podcast while talking about buying the masters of her music, artwork, and videos from her first six albums. “This changed my life. I can’t believe it,” she said. “This will affect the rest of my life.”

She put the importance of owning her masters in perspective by saying, “If I never would have been able to buy back my music, one day someone else would be leaving all of my music from my first six albums to their kids in their will.”

What wasn’t discussed was how Travis Kelce is coming off the least productive season of his career. The Chiefs failed to win a third straight Super Bowl last year, losing to Philadelphia, 40-22, in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans. Mr. Kelce, considered one of the best tight ends to play in the NFL, was a virtual non-factor in the game, catching four passes for 39 yards and no touchdowns.

It was a disappointing ending to a disappointing season for Mr. Kelce, whose production slipped for a second straight year. He gained a career low 823 yards on 97 receptions in 2024. He scored three touchdowns, another career low. It comes after suffering his first sub-1,000 yard season in 2023, when he earned 984 yards on 93 receptions with five TDs.

Those numbers are a far cry from his 2022 season — before he began dating Ms. Swift. He had 1,338 receiving yards that year on 110 catches. He scored 12 touchdowns.

In a recently published article in GQ, Mr. Kelce admitted his outside ventures, including the podcast, acting in movies and commercials, and dating Ms. Swift may have affected his production.

“I think it might have slipped a little bit because I did have a bit more focus in trying to set myself up,” he said. “And opportunities came up where I was excited to venture into a new world of acting and being an entertainer. I don’t say this as ‘I shouldn’t have done it.’ I’m just saying that my work ethic is such that I have so much pride in how I do things that I never want the product to tail off and I feel like these past two years haven’t been to my standards.”

His peers have noticed his decline. The NFL announced the list of the league’s top 100 players as voted on by the players. Mr. Kelce was voted 37th, falling from no. 9 last season.

As the Chiefs prepare for the upcoming season and rumors swirl about whether this might be his last season, expect Ms. Swift to continue to be his biggest fan while promoting her new album.

“I love this new world Travis has shown me,” she said. “It’s so exciting and so fun. The pressure on sports is such a different type. I have such a respect for everyone.”