Is This Season the Last Hurrah for Travis Kelce?
Travis Kelce seems to have everything a man in his position would ever want. He’s got superstar status in the NFL, three Super Bowl rings, a Hall of Fame-worthy career, and a girlfriend who is one of the most popular human beings on the planet right now. When Kelce ends his illustrious career in the league, he’ll have a lot to look back on and be proud of. The question is, is that ending already upon us?
While the legendary tight end has made it clear that we will definitely be seeing him on the gridiron in a Kansas City Chiefs jersey this upcoming season, there are a lot of things that could be pointing to 2025 being his last ride in the league. Firstly, Kelce’s contract comes to an end after the 2025 season. While it's entirely possible that the Chiefs could extend him for another year, or that he could even find himself in a different color jersey by this time next year, this isn’t the same Travis Kelce that the Chiefs gave a huge extension to back in 2020. Kelce will be 36 years old just a few weeks into the regular season, and, unless your name is Jerry Rice or Tom Brady, Father Time catches up with everyone in the league at some point. Honestly, that point may have been this last season.
It is no secret that the mighty Chiefs’ offense stuttered along this past season. Looking at Kelce’s stats from 2024, he was far from immune to Kansas City’s slump. Kelce posted both the least amount of receiving yards and receiving touchdowns he’s ever had in a season. That would be a worrying number for any tight end in the league, much less someone closer to 40 than 30 years old. While Kelce certainly might have it in him to put up respectable numbers in 2025, it would be very unlikely to see him return to his statistical heights at the beginning of the decade.
Some rumors state that he would have retired had the Chiefs’ attempt at a threepeat not ended in disaster. If this year’s Chiefs have anything to say about it, they’ll be sending Kelce off into retirement with a fourth ring on his finger. Time will tell if this season sees the sunsetting of a Chiefs legend or the roaring swansong of one of the greatest tight ends to ever grace the NFL. If this really is the last season of Kelce in a Kansas City uniform, don’t be surprised if he decides to go out with a bang rather than a whimper.
