Travis Kelce could be mere weeks from retirement.
At face value, such a statement might be shocking. Father Time comes for everyone, though, and after his 13th NFL season -- one in which he took a moment to soak in the roar of Arrowhead Stadium when introduced for the Chiefs' final home game of 2025 -- it's very possible Kelce played his last game on Sunday in Las Vegas.
Kelce won't commit to a decision in early January, however; nearly every veteran takes time away from the game before coming to a conclusion. But if body language was any indicator over the final few weeks of the 2025 season, it sure seems as if Kelce might follow his brother, Jason, into retirement.
Kelce spoke on the matter on the latest episode of the brothers' podcast, New Heights.
“Every season ends for me, I put my feet up and I just be a human because I’ve been putting my body through the ringer for the love of it,” he said. “I do enjoy playing football and the physical aspect of it. I think there’s something about feeling the wear and tear of the football season, getting ready for a game, knowing that your body’s ... beat down, man. I think there’s something to it (that) makes you just feel like a mangy animal that just is ... out here, just finding a way to survive. And I just ... love that (stuff).”
Kelce is leaning fully into football guy territory with this explanation, but it's a great example of the addictive nature of the sport that keeps players coming back well into their 30s. To Kelce's credit, he had plenty of reason to continue playing, still accounting for approximately 90 receptions and nearly 1,000 receiving yards in each of his last two seasons. There was also the annual pursuit of a Super Bowl in which his Chiefs participated.
The latter is not a possibility this season, not after Kelce's Chiefs were eliminated from the postseason and lost Patrick Mahomes on the same day. The remaining two contests were all but worthless for Kansas City, a reality Kelce hasn't been familiar with during his NFL career.
“It’s kind of an embarrassing feeling,” Kelce said. “But you keep it moving, man, you keep it moving. And I’m still a fan of the game, and I still love the game, so I’ll be tuned in throughout the playoffs, seeing how this thing shakes out over the next couple of weeks. I’ll get to be around some friends and family in January instead of trying to figure out how to win some playoff games.”
It's a sobering reality for Kelce. Depending on what he decides in the next month or so, it might become his future, too.
“Just being a regular human for a couple weeks, maybe a month or so, and trying to figure out what I’m gonna do next in terms of my future in football,” he said. “And I’ve talked to a few people in the facility already, having the exit meetings and everything, and they know where I stand, at least right now. And I think there’s a lot of love for the game that’s still there, and I don’t think I’ll ever lose that.
“And I don’t know. It’s a tough thing to navigate, but at the same time, I think if my body can heal up and rest up, and I can feel confident that I can go out there and give it another 18-, 20-, 21-week run, I think I would do it in a heartbeat. So I think right now it’s just finding that answer and seeing how the body feels after this game, and kind of when it all settles down.”