Patrick Mahomes Weighs In On Travis Kelce Retirement Rumors
“He’s given so much to this team and to the NFL.”
Patrick Mahomes addressed the rumors that Travis Kelce could retire after the Chiefs’ Super Bowl loss to the Eagles on Feb. 9. During a post-game press conference, Mahomes discussed the possibility of Kelce retiring, but did not share exactly what is in store for his teammate’s future.
“I’ll let Travis make that decision on his own, man,” he said about the retirement rumors in a video posted to X, formerly called Twitter. “He’s given so much to this team and to the NFL and been such a joy, not only for me to work with but for people to watch.”
“He knows he still has a lot of football left in him. You can see it. He always makes plays in the biggest moments, but it’s if he wants to put in that grind because it’s a grind to go out there and play 20 games and get to the Super Bowl,” Mahomes added. “He’s done enough to be a gold jacket guy and a first-ballot Hall of Famer.”
“I know he still has love for the game,” Mahomes continued, adding that it would be a discussion for Kelce and his loved ones. “And he’ll get to spend some time with his family and make that decision on his own, but he knows he’ll come back here with welcome arms.”
He added, “We love that guy not only for the football player, but the person that he is every single day.”
On Feb. 3, six days before the Super Bowl, Kelce was asked where he’d like to be in three years — and he seemed optimistic about the possibility of staying in the NFL. “Hopefully still playing football. I love doing this, I love coming into work every day. I feel like I still have a lot of good football left in me. We’ll see what happens,” he told reporters.
“I know I’ve been setting myself up for other opportunities in my life. That’s always been the goal knowing football only lasts for so long,” he added. “You have to find a way to get into another career and another profession. I’ve been doing that in my offseason. But for the most part, I plan on being a Kansas City Chief and playing football.”
Following the Super Bowl loss, Kelce did not address retirement rumors, but he did express his disappointment with the game. “[The Eagles] got after us,” he told reporters after the game in a video posted to X. “All three phases. Couldn’t get it going offensively.”
“You don’t lose like that without everything going bad. We haven’t played that bad all year,” Kelce added at the time.
