Travis Kelce knows he’ll be feeling deflated when the game clock finally runs out.
The Kansas City Chiefs tight end, whose contract expires at the end of this month, recently shared what he’ll miss most about playing football when he eventually retires.
He described those key moments in important games, explaining on the March 4th episode of his podcast, New Heights (co-hosted with his brother Jason Kelce), the pressure of performing when it matters most. It’s about knowing 70,000 people are relying on you, in addition to your teammates who you fight alongside.
The 36-year-old explained that those clutch moments – performing well under pressure in important games like the playoffs – are something he’ll miss the most, as he knows he won’t experience them again.
Travis Kelce, recently engaged to Taylor Swift, shared that he’s incredibly grateful for the opportunity to have led the Kansas City Chiefs to three Super Bowl appearances over his 13 seasons in the NFL.
He explained that the most rewarding part of his career was experiencing the payoff from all his hard work, especially when making deep playoff runs. He believes that’s what he’ll miss the most.
Travis hasn’t decided if he’ll play another season in the NFL, but we should know soon. He said he would make a decision by the beginning of March.
In November, the player told reporters, as noted by ESPN, that he wants to give the Chiefs a chance to plan for the future, regardless of whether he returns or they want him back. He’d prefer to make a decision about his future before the team needs to focus on the draft and free agency to improve the roster, which will happen at the end of the season. He plans to wait until then to start considering his options.
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach recently mentioned that the team has been preparing for either Travis Kelce retiring or continuing to play, stating in February they’ve approached the situation with both possibilities in mind.
He went on to say that Travis is exceptional, calling him an icon, and expressed hope for his return, adding that they should allow things to unfold naturally.
If Travis Kelce decides to retire from football, he’ll have a lot of support, including his brother Jason, who recently retired from the Philadelphia Eagles, and his fiancée. He’ll also stay busy with their podcast and planning his wedding to Taylor Swift.
Travis understands that retiring from football will be emotionally difficult. He’s said he’s pushed his body to its limits because he genuinely loves the sport and the physical challenge it provides, explaining, “I just really love that.”
He believes the game still has a dedicated fanbase and that his own passion for it will never fade.
To learn more about Travis’ life on and off the field, keep reading.
Although Travis Kelce is now famously associated with Kansas City, Missouri, he actually spent his childhood growing up in Cleveland Heights, Ohio.
Okay, so this is amazing. He doesn’t even say where he went to college – like, the University of Cincinnati? Forget it! He always yells out where he’s from instead! It’s such a small thing, but I notice everything, and it just shows how much pride he has in his hometown. It’s perfect, honestly. I love it when he does that during the player introductions – it’s just… chef’s kiss.
Which, as you might guess, has irked some fellow alums.
Travis Kelce explained that while he deeply values his time at the University of Cincinnati, it wasn’t always easy. Speaking at his 2019 Hall of Fame induction at Cleveland Heights High School, alongside his brother Jason Kelce, he admitted he faced challenges, including losing his scholarship due to some poor decisions. He joked that he was likely the ‘Heights guy’ many in the room knew who had made mistakes.
He explained that Cleveland Heights wasn’t just meaningful to him personally, but to everyone in the community. He emphasized the city’s diversity and how it inspires him. He said everything he does, whether on or off the field, is dedicated to Cleveland Heights – and that even his celebrations are a tribute to the city and its people.
2. About that revoked scholarship…
Following Cincinnati’s perfect 2009 season and their Big East championship win, Travis tested positive for marijuana before the 2010 Sugar Bowl. This happened after he partied excessively on New Year’s Eve while in New Orleans.
It was awful watching him miss the bowl game, but things got so much worse. The NCAA suspended him for the entire 2010 season, and then they took away his scholarship! Suddenly, he had nowhere to live and couldn’t afford meals. He ended up moving in with my brother Jason – literally sharing a room with him and a few of Jason’s teammates. To make ends meet, he took a job as a telemarketer, and believe me, it was a rough gig – he had to call people all day and ask for their opinions on the Affordable Care Act. It was heartbreaking to see him go through all of that.
They did, and Travis could not wait to get back on the field.
Before focusing on football, Travis played hockey, baseball, and basketball. He originally joined his high school football team as a quarterback and was even a two-star recruit for Cincinnati. However, he switched to tight end as a requirement to rejoin the team after being suspended.
When I was drafted by the Chiefs in 2013, we already had a great quarterback in Zach Collaros, but we needed more support for both running and passing plays,” Travis explained to Arrowhead Pride. “I spoke with my coach, Butch Jones, and he felt a tight end was what we needed. Thankfully, my abilities and athleticism fit the role perfectly, and it all worked out great for me.
As he explained to GQ magazine in 2017, recalling a particularly embarrassing experience, he’d always been told he was naturally suited to play tight end.
Travis and his teammates, including Jason, often had lively, beer-filled gatherings at the house on 127 W. Nixon Street.
According to college friend and teammate Tom DeTemple, the brothers were avid Nintendo 64 players. He told the New York Times before the 2024 Super Bowl that they’d spend hours playing, often combining it with drinking games they invented on the spot – and they were surprisingly skilled at both.
5. And suffice it to say, Travis is extremely proud of being a Bearcat.
Before the 2023 Super Bowl, the Chiefs player shared how much Cincinnati means to him. He expressed strong pride in being a University of Cincinnati graduate, mentioning he recently earned his diploma and enjoys supporting the school whenever possible. He especially misses the friends and teammates he made there, and the people who supported him through good times and bad.
Even while facing scrutiny from the NCAA, he explained that the players, coaches, and staff at the university believed in his ability to improve and succeed. He said that support meant a great deal to him at the time.
After nearly ten years away from school to pursue his football career, Travis finally completed his bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies in 2022. He officially received his diploma in April 2024 at a special, unexpected graduation ceremony held in Cincinnati after he and Jason recorded a live episode of their podcast, New Heights, at Fifth Third Arena.
As the graduate went to shake the dean’s hand in congratulations, he was already holding a beer and immediately drank it down.
And Travis was going to graduate in 2022 but he missed his flight.
Because of some personal problems, Travis Kelce wasn’t drafted as high as some expected, becoming the fifth tight end selected in the 2013 NFL Draft – picked by the Chiefs in the third round. Once Travis joined the team, coach Andy Reid, who had previously coached Travis’s brother Jason in Philadelphia, asked Jason to give him a positive recommendation about Travis.
Andy and Travis have three Super Bowl rings to show for Jason’s endorsement.
Travis used to listen to Randy Newman’s song “Burn On” before every game for years, though his pre-game music choices have since evolved.
Growing up on the east side of Cleveland, this song always makes me reflect on family and appreciate where I am in life,” he explained on the 2017 NBC Sports podcast, PFT Live.
Let us explain: It’s in the opening credits of Major League, the ultimate Cleveland sports movie.
9. Everyone, including Travis, is mispronouncing his last name.
Everyone has been pronouncing Kelce as “Kel-see,” but the correct pronunciation actually rhymes with “else.”
The news came out when Chris Jones, Travis’ teammate, mentioned it on Inside the NFL in January, saying, “It’s just crazy, right?” Travis and Jason Kelce then confirmed the story when they talked to their father, Ed Kelce, on their New Heights podcast.
I was so confused when Jason suddenly asked why we’d changed our name to “Kel-see!” It was so out of the blue. He was really trying to wrap his head around the fact that we’d all thought our name was “Kel-see” for, like, my entire life – 27 years for me, 25 for Trav. It was a funny, slightly bewildered moment, honestly.
Ed admitted he “got tired of correcting people” but urged his son to “do whatever you want.”
Travis has worn the number 87 his entire NFL career to honor his brother Jason, who was born in 1987.
Travis Kelce shared with NFL Films before the 2023 Super Bowl that the family’s NFL success – with both him and his brother Jason playing professionally – began with his birth in 1987. He was referencing the start of what would become a legacy for the Kelce family, as he and his brother faced off with their respective teams, the Chiefs and the Eagles.
Travis Kelce’s Eighty Seven & Running foundation has consistently supported Operation Breakthrough, a Kansas City nonprofit learning center. He first volunteered there in 2015, reading The Cat in the Hat to the children, and has been involved ever since.
Yes, reader, he wore the hat.
Since then, Travis has supported the program by investing in its Smart Lab and purchasing the building next door. This allowed them to create the Ignition Lab, where students rebuild discarded cars into functional electric vehicles.
Travis and Jason affectionately call their podcast listeners “92 percenters.” This nickname comes from a joke Jason made about a quarterback sneak play – he said it succeeds about 92% of the time when a team only needs to gain one yard for a touchdown.
Listeners loved the podcast so much they started calling themselves the “92 percenters,” as if it were a special inside joke, according to the podcast’s website.
Who were the Kelce brothers to argue with that?
Travis Kelce works with three trainers—Alex Skacel, Andrew Spruill, and Laurence Justin Ng—and typically has one of them travel with him to help him stay in peak condition for football year-round, according to The Athletic.
Alex, a physical therapist, remembered Travis wanting to go for a run late at night after Paris Fashion Week. Travis had skipped his usual workout that day and felt the need to be active.
According to a recent interview with the New York Times in April, the trainer said they were doing sprint workouts on the bridges over the river at midnight. He emphasized that, regardless of location, the athlete always makes time to complete his necessary tasks.
Travis’s chef, Kumar Ferguson, is a longtime friend – they’ve known each other since grade school in Cleveland Heights.
In 2016, he was a truck driver who enjoyed cooking as a hobby when Travis contacted him with a job offer.
Kumar recounted to Vanity Fair in 2023 that the person said, ‘I really want to commit to a serious diet and improve it.’ Kumar responded that he was immediately on board, and just three or four days later, he found himself in Kansas City.
He handles a wide range of tasks, from simple things like keeping Travis’ fridge full to more involved duties like providing healthy lunches for the entire Chiefs team at practice.
Travis Kelce has been getting a lot of attention for his facial hair lately. He shared on his podcast, New Heights, that he shaved his beard after the season in 2023 but kept his mustache as a tribute to Andy Reid’s signature walrus look, and he’s doing it again this year.
In April 2024, Travis signed a two-year contract worth $34.25 million, making him the NFL’s highest-paid tight end for the first time in his career.
Which finally put an end to years of chatter about how much money he wasn’t making.
In a 2023 interview with Vanity Fair, Travis Kelce joked that his managers and agents often point out how little he earns. He said whenever he brings up wanting a raise, they tell him to ask the Kansas City Chiefs for more money.
By that point, he had found other ways to make money, so he was more interested in enjoying his work than earning a large salary.
Okay, so, honestly? The whole ‘free market’ thing sounds amazing in theory, but it’s not fun when you actually try it and don’t come out on top. And let me tell you, I live to win. Seriously, I absolutely adore where I am right now – it’s a winning situation, and that’s all that matters to me!
He admitted it’s a little discouraging to see how much other players are earning. It makes him wonder if he’s being fairly compensated and if pushing harder would actually result in him getting what he deserves. Despite those concerns, he genuinely enjoys his work and loves going to the arena every day.
Travis developed a passion for clothing early on, growing up in Cleveland Heights. He described his high school as a daily fashion show in a 2023 interview with Vanity Fair.
He turned a bedroom into a walk-in closet to store his expensive clothes and over 300 pairs of sneakers. He even splurged on a pair of size-13 Nike Air Mags with a significant part of his first professional salary, even though they didn’t quite fit.
He told the Wall Street Journal that early in his career, before sneaker apps were common, he’d just buy whatever size of shoe he could find in the style he wanted.
He’s a big fan of Nike, especially since they sponsor him, but he also loves Chuck Taylor sneakers. They remind him of Benny “The Jet” Rodriguez, the amazing baseball player from the movie The Sandlot.
18. Among his dozens of investments, Travis co-owns Ohio-brewed Garage Beer with Jason.
As many of you know, I enjoy a good beer every now and then! So, I’m thrilled to be an owner of Garage Beer and really involved in crafting a fantastic light beer. Honestly, nothing beats bringing people together like an ice-cold brew, and that’s what it’s all about for my partner Jason and me – good times with friends and family. We want to create a beer that embodies that feeling!
19. We’re sensing a theme when it comes to Travis’ guilty pleasure TV choices.
He reminisced about the TV show Gossip Girl, describing it on the New Heights podcast as a classic New York high school drama full of gossip and people talking negatively about each other. He simply called it ‘awesome’.
His new favorite show? Peacock’s Emmy-winning backstab-a-ganza The Traitors.
After 12 seasons in the NFL, 35-year-old Travis has recently been sharing more about the physical challenges of playing football.
He’s faced constant setbacks from the start, beginning with a knee injury during what would have been his first year as a player. That injury needed surgery – the first of ten he’s undergone throughout his career – and he’s been bravely battling through difficulties ever since.
Okay, so here’s the scoop! Travis Kelce recently shared on his podcast, New Heights, that he tried to meet Taylor Swift during her Eras Tour stop in Kansas City. He’d actually made a friendship bracelet with his number on it hoping to give it to her, but unfortunately, he wasn’t able to get it to her. It’s a cute story, and shows he was definitely trying to make a connection!
She heard through mutual connections that Travis wanted to meet her, and then she reached out to him.
He told WSJ. Magazine that she explained the whole situation to him and how he felt fortunate she contacted him.
Travis has always loved French toast, especially when it’s covered in whipped cream and syrup.
But more recently he’s become a fan of his girlfriend’s homemade Pop-Tarts and cinnamon rolls.
23. At least one of Travis’ ringtones is Chris Farley shrieking “For the love of God!” in Tommy Boy.
He told WSJ. Magazine that he wants to share his love of comedians like Chris Farley, Adam Sandler, and Will Ferrell with Taylor. He explained, “I told her, ‘This is what I’m really into.’”
After the Chiefs won the AFC Championship in 2019, Travis Kelce shouted “You’ve got to fight for your right to party!” This led to the team playing the Beastie Boys’ song of the same name after every touchdown scored at home games in Arrowhead Stadium.
Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach described Travis Kelce as a huge boost to team morale in a 2020 interview with ESPN. He explained that Kelce’s positive energy and personality are difficult to measure, but incredibly valuable. Kelce connects with everyone, is a natural leader, and genuinely makes the workplace more enjoyable, improving everyone’s mood and focus.
The person who enthusiastically introduced the song to everyone surprisingly didn’t learn all the lyrics to the 1986 hit until he had to sing it with Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show in February 2023.
In May 2024, Travis Scott revealed his three favorite Taylor Swift songs are “Blank Space,” “The Alchemy,” and “So High School.”
When asked about them a few months later, he gave a different answer, saying, “I love them all—every single one!”
He publicly stated in August 2025 that his favorite song from The Life of a Show Girl is “Opalite.”
People began comparing Travis Kelce to Tony Gonzalez, the Chiefs’ all-time great tight end who retired in 2013 after 17 seasons, very early in Kelce’s career.
Back in 2015, as people began to wonder if Travis would exceed Tony’s accomplishments—and how letdown fans would be if he didn’t—Travis claimed he ignored all the talk.
I’m my own harshest critic,” he explained to Complex. “I’m aiming for a record-breaking season – I want to have the best statistical year any tight end has ever had.”
In 2024, Travis became the Kansas City Chiefs’ all-time leader in receptions, breaking the previous record with his 917th catch.
Travis recently shared on the New Heights podcast how it feels to be succeeding with the Kansas City Chiefs, a team with a long and storied history dating back to the 1960s. He noted the team’s enduring success is thanks to that history and the influence of players like Tony Gonzalez, who he considers a mentor and deeply admires.
27. Of Travis’ many accomplishments, keeping his house in order on his own isn’t one of them.
“He can’t clean,” mom Donna Kelce told Extra in September 2024. “He can’t cook.”
But perhaps hosting a special someone served as extra motivation to get it together.
“He’s getting a little better,” Donna acknowledged. “I think he’s getting some help.”
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2026-03-04 22:21