Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce and a monoculture yearning for romance

Is it weird? Is it perfect? Is it anything? A nation giddily contemplates a pairing that, for many observers, checks all the right boxes.

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (Taylor’s Version) — “Trayvis” isn’t quite right. “Kelswift” isn’t much better. “Travlor” is a pharmaceutical jingle waiting to happen. “Tayce” is nonsense. “Selce” sounds like an off-brand antacid. So what should we call them?

That paragraph was a test. Surely you understand it, provided you are part of the human population, but for those of you who for whatever reason aren’t: Taylor Swift showed up at the Sept. 24 Kansas City Chiefs-Chicago Bears game to cheer on Chiefs star tight end Travis Kelce. And after a week of national tittering (and wishin’ and hopin’) that these two might be right for each other, Swift showed up again Sunday night, here at MetLife Stadium for NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” as the Chiefs took on the New York Jets and won 23-20 in a closer-than-expected game. (“The @Chiefs are now 2-0 with @TaylorSwift13 in attendance,” the NFL posted to X, formerly Twitter.)