Travis Kelce isn’t going anywhere. The star Chiefs tight end is “for sure” coming back to Kansas City for another NFL season, Pat McAfee revealed Thursday on his self-titled ESPN show after weeks of speculation about Kelce’s future.
“I’m coming back, for sure,” Kelce told McAfee in a text that was read on the air. “Gonna try and get to the best shape I’ve been this offseason and get back to the mountaintop. Got a real bad taste in my mouth with how I played in that last game and how I got the guys ready for battle. I can’t go out like that!!!!”
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Word of Kelce’s return comes weeks after the Chiefs’ hopes of a Super Bowl three-peat were thwarted by the Eagles in a lopsided 40-22 loss in New Orleans.
Travis Kelce is returning for the 2025 NFL season, Pat McAfee reported in February.AP
He had just four receptions for 39 yards in the championship contest.
“Just wasn’t our day,” Kelce said on a previous installment of his “New Heights” podcast. “Couldn’t find a lick of momentum. I’m kicking myself for some of the tiny, tiny decisions I made on the field.”
Kelce, whose fame skyrocketed in recent years as his relationship with pop superstar Taylor Swift has intensified, also addressed the “wear and tear” on his body from consecutive deep postseason runs.
“The fact that we keep going to these AFC Championships and these Super Bowls, that means I’m playing an extra three [more] games than everybody else in the entire league,’’ Kelce said. “That’s a lot of wear and tear on your body, and it’s a lot of time spent in the building, focusing on your craft, focusing on the task at hand, every challenge that you set up for yourself. That process can be grueling [and] it can weigh on you.”
A third-round pick in 2013 out of the University of Cincinnati — where he played with his brother, retired Eagles center Jason Kelce — Travis Kelce has spent his entire career with the Chiefs.
Travis Kelce is coming off a rough Super Bowl loss to the Eagles.AP
He tallied four receptions in Super Bowl 2025.USA Today
The 10-time Pro Bowler holds the single-season receiving yards record for a tight end with 1,416, set in 2020. He also holds the tight-end record for most consecutive seasons (7) with 1,000 or more receiving yards.
Kelce, due to make an $11.5 million roster bonus March 14, is looking to bounce back after a quiet 2024 season in which he posted career lows in receiving yards (823) and touchdown catches (three).
Travis Kelce’s profile has risen in recent years amid his romance with Taylor Swift.Getty ImagesAD
The couple has been dating since 2023.AP
The three-time Super Bowl champ was supported throughout the season by Swift, whom he has been dating since 2023.
The 14-time Grammy winner was in attendance at most Chiefs home games this season, as well as Super Bowl 2025 at Caesars Superdome.
Page Six reported earlier this week the couple is back in the U.S. after enjoying a private romantic getaway.
Travis Kelce will be entering his 13th NFL season in 2025.USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
He has won three Super Bowls as a member of the Chiefs.Getty Images
“Taylor and Travis had a really nice time reconnecting after a very busy year,” a source told the outlet.
Swift wrapped her nearly two-year Eras Tour in December.
McAfee’s report Thursday follows recent comments made by Chiefs general manager Brett Veach, who hinted at Kelce’s return earlier this week.
Taylor Swift attended Super Bowl 2025.Getty Images
Travis Kelce celebrated the Chiefs’ Super Bowl 2024 win with Taylor Swift.Sports Illustrated via Getty Images
“How we left it at the end of the season is that he was fired up,” Veach said at the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. “He has one more year under contract. Still think he has that fire and desire to play. As far as I’m concerned, there is no deadline [for a decision]. I think we left it as he’d be back. And we’re excited to get him back and get him going.”