Saints' Khalen Saunders makes memorable return to Arrowhead Stadium in front of Taylor Swift

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Saints defensive tackle Khalen Saunders probably left Taylor Swift with some mixed feelings Monday night.

The big run-stuffer was a third-round draft pick of the Chiefs in 2019, and he proceeded to win a pair of Super Bowl rings over his first four seasons with them. But Saunders signed with New Orleans as a free agent a couple of years ago, and he returned to Arrowhead Stadium for the first time to face his former team in front of Swift and a boisterous Chiefs crowd.

The Saints ultimately lost 26-13, but Saunders made his presence known on back-to-back plays in the second half.

First, the 324-pound defensive tackle stopped Travis Kelce on an inside pass play when the Chiefs had first-and-goal at the New Orleans 2 and were trying to extend a 16-7 lead. Then, on the very next play, Saunders was in the right place at the right time as a pass bounced off JuJu Smith-Schuster's hands and into his waiting arms for his first career interception. Saunders rumbled out of the end zone for a 37-yard return.

How does Swift factor into everything?

For one thing, she has been dating Kelce for more than a year, and was back at Arrowhead Stadium to see him play after missing the Chiefs' last two games on the road. And for another, one of her backup dancers happens to be Saunders' brother, Kameron.

The sequence will surely wake up the conspiracy theorists who think the NFL is rigged.

The ESPN telecast had just shown a picture of Kameron Saunders with Swift and Kelce during a trip to London, where the Chiefs tight end had made a cameo during one of her performances at Wembley Stadium on her Eras Tour over this summer.

Kameron Saunders has also joined Swift in a suite to see games at Arrowhead Stadium in the past.

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