While Travs Kelce’s 2025-26 season didn’t end the way he wanted, I thought that once the season was over, Travis would decide that he does want to retire after all. I mean, he keeps getting offered all kinds of side-gigs, and he doesn’t have to remain an active football player to bank lucrative sponsorships. Travis only has to ask his retired brother about that – Jason Kelce is making major money these days and I feel like Jason and Kylie are starring in every other commercial. Travis turns 37 in October – realistically, how much longer will his body hold up? These are the thoughts I imagined running through Travis’s mind. But apparently not! Travis has decided that he will play one more year. While he’s a free agent, apparently Travis is willing to walk away from much bigger paydays so he can finish his career (??) with the Chiefs.
Travis Kelce, one of the NFL’s most illustrious tight ends and a three-time champion with the Kansas City Chiefs, has informed the Chiefs that he’s returning for a 14th season with the team, a source told ESPN on Monday.
Kelce made his decision just ahead of the start of the NFL’s free agency period, as he was set to become an unrestricted free agent. As one of the league’s best tight ends, Kelce would’ve been an intriguing option for several teams, but a source told ESPN that he informed the Chiefs on Monday morning his intentions to stay alongside coach Andy Reid — his only coach throughout his NFL career — quarterback Patrick Mahomes and pass rusher Chris Jones.
Two weeks ago, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach acknowledged that the team was hopeful that Kelce would return for another season, one that could be the last in his distinguished career.
“Travis is the best,” Veach said at the NFL combine. “He’s an icon, and hopefully he comes back. We’ll just kind of let that process play out. It’s not your typical 27-year-old [and] first time at free agency. Travis has done everything and has accomplished everything. He’s about to get married. He’s got a lot going on, so I don’t think there’s an element of us not trying to get something done — you need to have some sort of deadline [or] timeline — but at the same time he’s Travis Kelce.”
The details of Kelce’s contract are still unknown, but he could return for a one-year deal or a two-year deal to help give the Chiefs more flexibility with their salary cap.
I can imagine the allure for Travis: finishing his career with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, going back to be with “his team,” and trying to put everything he’s got left into ending his career with a bang. That’s his fairytale ending – a push to make it to one more Super Bowl, a push for another ring. Do y’all think Taylor Swift is on board? Weirdly, I bet she is. She seems to enjoy watching Travis work and I bet she wants one more season where she’s the cheerleader with the cute football player.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Backgrid.
