Days after the Kansas City Chiefs’ Week 18 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders, star tight end Travis Kelce remains undecided on his future. Kelce discussed the state of his game on the latest episode of the “New Heights” podcast, emphasizing that he will take some time to see how he feels in the offseason before making a decision.
Kelce, 36, said he still has “a lot of love” for football but will see how his body responds now that he has some time off.
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The full text of his comments is as follows:
“You know, I’ve talked to some people at the factory, had exit meetings and stuff like that. They know where I stand, at least for now. The love for the sport is still there, and I don’t know if I’m going to lose that.
“I don’t know. It’s a hard thing to navigate, but at the same time, if my body can heal and get some rest and I’m confident that I can continue running for 18, 20, 21 weeks, I won’t hesitate to do that.
“I think now it’s just about finding out and seeing how the body feels after this game and when everything settles down.”
Kelce’s brother, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, then asked Travis about some comments from Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones, who said after Week 18 that he expected Travis to be back for another year.
“He’ll be back next year,” Jones said when asked about Kelce after Sunday’s game.
Kelce laughed off the comment and said, “That’s why he loved Chris. He was so optimistic.” Kelce quickly moved away from the topic, not wanting to talk about it anymore.
In many ways, Kelce is having a bounce-back season in 2025. After a down year in 2024, Kelce caught 76 passes for 851 yards and five touchdowns this season. While those numbers are down from his peak, Kelce has more yards per catch, more receiving yards and more receiving touchdowns than he does in 2024.
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While this provides some evidence that Kelce can still play, it’s unclear whether he would be willing to return for another year, especially with Patrick Mahomes considering missing some time when the 2026 NFL season begins. Mahomes tore his ACL in December and will spend the entire offseason recovering from the injury. The team has not determined a timetable for Mahomes’ return.
If Mahomes is out next season, Kelce will start the season catching passes from the Chiefs backup. That didn’t lead to much success in Week 18, as Kelce only had three catches for 12 yards in the game. Once Mahomes gets hurt, that’s basically what Kelce’s situation looks like. After Mahomes was lost for the season, Kelce failed to score a touchdown the rest of the game.
In addition to his overall health, Kelce will have to take that into consideration when discussing whether he wants to play another season. The 36-year-old has already established himself in Canton and has three Super Bowl rings, so he doesn’t have much left to accomplish in the NFL.
If he does come back for another season, it will be because Kelce still loves the game. All things considered, it’s a pretty good place to be.