Rumors have been swirling over the past few days about whether or not the Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce is retiring. This comes after his team’s humiliating 40-22 Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles last Sunday night.
Now, it’s been revealed that the Chiefs have slapped Kelce, 35, with a deadline. Indeed, it seems that the team is demanding that he make a decision about retiring as soon as possible.
Kelce’s Deadline
New reports allege that the Chiefs have given Kelce until March 14 to make his decision. His current contract with the Chiefs runs through the 2025 season and includes an $11.5 million roster bonus that is due March 15. Meanwhile, the NFL’s free agency period begins March 10.
After the Super Bowl loss, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, 29, was asked if he’d spoken to Kelce about his plans for next season. Mahomes responded by saying that he’s going to “let Travis make that decision on his own.”
“He’s given so much to this team and to the NFL,” Mahomes continued of Kelce. “And he’s been such a joy, not only for me to work with, but for people to watch.”
Kelce Suggests He May Retire
In an episode of his New Heights podcast that dropped on Wednesday, Kelce made comments that led fans to speculate that he may be retiring.
“I know everybody wants to know whether or not I’m playing next year, and right now I’m just kicking everything down the road. I’m kicking every can I can down the road,” a dejected Kelce said.
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Kelce went on to talk about the toll that playing professional football takes on his body. Keep in mind, at age 35, a contact position like tight end is considered practically ancient.
“The fact that we keep going to these AFC Championships and these Super Bowls, that means I’m playing an extra three games than everybody else in the entire league,” he explained. “That’s a lot of wear and tear on your body and it’s a lot of time spent in the building, focusing on your craft, focusing on the task at hand, every challenge that you set up for yourself. That process can be grueling, it can weigh on you.”
“It can make you better [but] it can drive you crazy at the same time, and right now it’s one of those things where it was kind of driving me crazy this year,” Kelce continued. “It happens when you kind of tail off towards the back nine of your career. When you feel yourself not have the success that you used to have, it’s a tough pill to swallow.”
Insider Claims Kelce ‘Isn’t Going To Retire’
However, on Thursday, a well-placed source told The Sun that while Kelce is “crushed” by his Super Bowl defeat, he isn’t considering retirement. In fact, according to this insider, Kelce is “already thinking” about next season. He’s even asked team officials about offseason fitness schedules so he can stay in shape for the fall.
“He isn’t going to retire,” the source claimed. “He wants to win more Super Bowls. His goal is to play three more seasons.”
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As Kelce makes his official decision over the next month, he will undoubtedly be spending lots of time with his girlfriend Taylor Swift, 35. After the Super Bowl, another insider told Page Six that Kelce and Swift “are looking forward to enjoying some downtime.”
“They knew that Taylor’s Eras Tour would be wrapping in December and football season would be coming to an end now so they had planned for this time to focus on some alone time to just be together,” the insider explained.
The source went on to say that Kelce and Swift “are looking forward to getting away from all the distractions and being by themselves.”
“Taylor and Travis are going to take some time away to vacation with just the two of them, talk about their future and just relax,” the insider concluded.
Clearly, Kelce will be using that vacation time to make a very big decision. It will certainly be interesting to see what he ends up choosing to do when it comes to retirement!
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