Chiefs star Travis Kelce shuts down retirement talk: 'I have no desire to stop'
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce is shutting down any talks of retirement.
"I have no reason to stop playing football," Kelce said on Thursday ahead of the Chiefs' wild-card weekend playoff matchup against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday. "I have no desire to stop anytime soon."
During an interview with The Wall Street Journal in November, Kelce revealed that he ponders retirement "more than anyone could ever imagine" due to the wear and tear of his body. "The pain. The lingering injuries – the 10 surgeries I’ve had that I still feel every single surgery to this day," the 34-year-old revealed.
But Kelce clarified on Thursday that he plans to retire "much further down the road." He added, "I love (playing football)... I just love the challenge that it gives me every single day to try and be at my best."
Kelce said he uses the offseason to dabble in other career paths, including his guest hosting appearance on NBC's "Saturday Night Live" in March following the Chiefs Super Bowl 57 victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. But during the NFL season, it's business as usual for Kelce.
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
"That's the point of the offseason, getting out there and being able to find what you love to do," Kelce said. "I've been fortunate to do a few things outside of the sports world that I've been enjoying doing, like getting on camera. The 'SNL' stuff kind of opened up a new happiness and maybe a new career path for me.
He added: "But it's funny for me to even say that at this point in my career. I think it's so much further down the road than it is right now."
Kelce closed out the 2023 regular season with 93 receptions for 984 yards and five touchdowns, just 16-yards short of recording his eighth 1,000-yard season. Head coach Andy Reid gave Kelce the opportunity to suit up for the Chiefs' regular-season finale against the Los Angeles Chargers, but Kelce opted to rest instead because it "just never felt right."
"I just didn't care enough about (1,000 yards)," Kelce said. "I felt like I could get some rest and let the guys go out there and just play the game instead of worrying about getting this old guy 16 yards."
Kelce, who was drafted out of Cincinnati by the Chiefs in the 2013 NFL draft, said he's more concerned with the team's legacy, than achieving a personal stat: "Without a doubt, I'm thinking more Super Bowls when I (talk) legacies and having that desire to be a certain type of teammate day in and day out."
The Chiefs and Kelce will face former teammate Tyreek Hill during the wild-card playoff game on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium, where game-time temperatures are expected to be near zero degrees, one of the coldest games in NFL playoff history.
It's not clear if Kelce's rumored girlfriend Taylor Swift will be in attendance.