Travis Kelce is one of the most accomplished athletes in the history of the NFL, having earned numerous accolades as a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs. Simply put, he’s had an excellent run and, as of late, there was reason to wonder whether he’d finally hang up his cleats. Well, within the last week, 35-year-old Kelce confirmed he would forgo retirement to participate in his 13th season as a pro athlete. Now, he’s getting candid about the biggest factors he weighed while deciding whether or not to return to the gridiron for another year.
I’d imagine it’s challenging for an athlete to think decide on retirement, as there are various factors – both internal and external – to consider. Travis Kelce opened up about his decision while speaking with his brother, Jason, on their New Heights podcast. When Jason asked his sibling to share his rationale for returning to the Chiefs, Travis began by attributing the choice to his sheer love of the sport as well as another major factor related to the previous NFL season:
I think the biggest thing is that I fucking love playing the game of football. I love playing, I still feel like I can play it at a high level. And possibly at a higher level than I did last year, I don’t think it was my best outing. I let my guys down in a lot more moments than I helped them, especially if you look at my track record and how I’ve been in years past. I just, you know, I wanna give it a good run. I got a bad taste in my mouth on how I ended the year and how well I was playing and how accountable I was for the people around me.
This past NFL season concluded with the Chiefs losing 40-22 to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX. Philly’s football club mostly dominated the game, with Travis Kelce, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and others having what some considered to be lackluster performances. Kelce went on to explain, however, that his decision not to retire came down to more than his performance from the previous season. The choice was also influenced by his genuine devotion to his organization and community:
I love so many people in Kansas City – both in that facility [and] in the community. It's home for me now. I don’t wanna leave that life yet. I put in a lot of hard work, and I put in a lot of focus into being the best that I can for KC, and last year it just didn’t end well for us. I feel like there’s a responsibility in me to play out the contract that I initially signed, to give Kansas City and the Chiefs organization everything that I got, and that’s what I’m gonna do, man.
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As noted during the interview, this development comes just about a year after Jason Kelce announced his retirement. The Super Bowl winner and Eagles legend addressed his decision during an emotional press conference, which went viral (in part due to the Taylor Swift quotes that were present). What’s always been apparent to me is that both siblings do indeed love football, so it definitely tracks that that’s one of the biggest elements that’s driving Travis now. Also, let’s be real, he’s also still a very effective tight end, who can indeed play at a high level.
Jason Kelce did also make a very funny, but true, observation in that by retiring, Travis could make even more money than he is now. The three-time Super Bowl winner has indeed been establishing other enterprises aside from podcasting. He’s moving into acting, as he starred on Grotesquerie, remains linked to the action movie Loose Cannons, and also has a role in Happy Gilmore 2. He even served as an executive producer on the film My Dead Friend Zoe, and a fellow EP thinks he has a bright future in Hollywood.
While I’m not personally a Chiefs fan and was rooting against them in the big game weeks ago, I've enjoyed watching Travis Kelce play over the years. I’m sincerely happy he’s made a decision that he’s comfortable with and hope that the upcoming season is fruitful for him. (OK, maybe not Super Bowl-level fruitful, as KC has won its fair share of titles, at this point.)
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