As Travis Kelce prepares to face his retirement decision head-on, many questions have been raised about the superstar tight end’s future.
One question mark in particular has been a potentially hard pill to swallow for members of Chiefs Kingdom: Would Kelce consider playing for another NFL franchise?
“My understanding is if he was going to play it wouldn’t be for anyone else besides the Chiefs,” NFL insider Ian Rapoport said on Sunday, December 28, during a report on NFL Network.
Kelce, 36, has played all 13 of his NFL seasons with Kansas City. The Chiefs have one game remaining on their schedule before Kelce will be forced to decide if he wants to return for another season.
Rapoport said Kelce will “take some time after the season is over to consider his fate and see what he wants to do, whether or not he wants to play a 14th season.”
The Chiefs close out their schedule on the road against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday, January 4. For the first time since 2014, the team did not qualify for the postseason.
Kelce leaving Kansas City was a longshot at best, but the future of the franchise remains up in the air after quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a season-ending torn ACL and damaged LCL on December 14.
It is not clear if Mahomes, 30, will be ready to start the 2026 season.
Kelce played what could have been his final home game at Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday, December 25, though the 11-time Pro Bowler refused to confirm anything after the game.
“A whole lot of emotions,” Kelce told reporters following the Christmas Day loss to the Denver Broncos. “You’ve got everybody in the world watching you. You get to go out there with the young guys on primetime television. Young guys getting an opportunity to taste what this NFL life is like.”
During a December 19 press conference, Kelce was similarly non-committal about his future plans.
“I think I’d rather just keep the focus of the media and everything on this team right now,” Kelce said. “All the conversations that I have with the team and everything moving forward will be with them.”
Kelce’s older brother, Jason — who retired in March 2024 after 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles — said he’s “curious” to see what Travis will choose to do in the coming months.
“In my opinion, to nail that decision, you have to step away from the game for a little bit,” Jason, 38, said December 15 on ESPN’s Monday Night Countdown. “Play these last three games, enjoy them with your teammates, enjoy them with your coaches. The team’s going to be different no matter whether you come back or not next year.”
Jason added, “It will come to you with time. There are so many emotions with this game right after a season, especially with the way this one’s been.”
The Chiefs are currently 6-10 and losers of seven of their last eight games.
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