Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce has said he is contemplating retirement following last weekend’s Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
The 35-year-old Kelce, who is dating pop superstar Taylor Swift, has one year left on his contract with the Chiefs but said he will take time to decide on his future after the disappointment of Kansas City’s 40-22 loss to Philadelphia, which denied them an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl title.
“I know everybody wants to know whether I’m playing next year and, right now, I’m just kicking everything down the road,” Kelce told the New Heights podcast, which he co-hosts with his brother Jason, the former Eagles centre who retired last March.
“I’m kicking every can I can down the road. I’m not making any crazy decisions. I’ve been fortunate over the past five, six years I’ve played more football than anybody.”
In the lead up to Sunday’s game, Kelce had said that repeatedly reaching the play-offs and playing in three consecutive Super Bowls had made him feel like he could “play this game forever”, but he has now admitted there is a price to pay for the extended seasons each year.
“The fact that we keep going to these AFC championships and these Super Bowls, that means I’m playing an extra three games more than everybody else in the entire league,” he said. “That’s a lot of wear and tear on your body.”
Kelce has spent his entire career with the Chiefs, having been selected in the third round of the 2013 draft. The three-time Super Bowl champion has the most post-season receptions of any player in NFL history with 178, 27 clear of second-placed Jerry Rice who retired in 2004.
“I think I owe it to my team-mates that if I do come back, it’s going to be a whole-hearted decision. Not half-assing it,” Kelce added.
“I’m fully here for them and I think I could play. It’s just whether or not I’m motivated or it’s the best decision for me as a man, as a human and as a person to take on all of that responsibility.”
