NFL Rumors: Travis Kelce addresses future, Stafford-Steelers connect, Tee Higgins message

The NFL season is officially over. The Philadelphia Eagles whooped on the Kansas City Chiefs en route to their first championship since 2017 and just like that, the season came and went. But there’s no such thing as dead time in the NFL. 

With the offseason comes swirling rumors surrounding players’ futures, teams decisions, disgruntled players demanding a trade and of course the NFL Draft. Here’s what’s going on in the NFL that is taking over headlines in the first week since the conclusion of the season. 

NFL Rumors: Travis Kelce sheds light on NFL future as rumors of his retirement looms

It would feel a little more obvious for Travis Kelce to retire after his 12th NFL season had the Chiefs defeated the Eagles for their third straight Super Bowl. But thanks to the worst game of the season, the Chiefs were left stunned in New Orleans and what had transpired. 

With it came speculation of what Kelce is going to do. Had the Chiefs won, it would have made sense to retire after a championship and go on about his life, post-NFL. But after losing, especially the way they did, it would make complete sense for Kelce to run it back one more year and see if he can go out with one final ring. 

On his podcast, “New Heights", which he does with former NFL center and his brother Jason Kelce, Travis shed light on his thoughts about his NFL future. He said he wants to take time to fully analyze if he has it in himself to gear up for another year. 

During a segment on the show, he talked about the toll the season takes on your body. Especially with the Chiefs and their playoff success. In each of the last three seasons, they played at least 20 games. That’s a long season for an aging player. 

He’ll take that into consideration as he takes time to debrief after another season. While he won’t admit it either, he doesn’t have the same pep in his step he did in years prior. The 2024 season, statistically speaking, was the worst since he rose to glory in his third NFL season. 

His 823 yards is the lowest of his NFL career, including his first two seasons before he broke the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career, and his three receiving touchdowns is the lowest of his career as well. 

Father time is closing in on its final strum in Kelce’s career. If this season is any indication, he may be calling it a career rather than forcing one final season that could leave a blemish on his Hall of Fame career. 

NFL Rumors: Matthew Stafford trade rumors put Steelers in play

Matthew Stafford could be packing it up on the West Coast and heading east if he and the Los Angeles Rams can’t come up with a deal for more guaranteed money. The Rams could possibly make Stafford available for trade if the two sides don’t come to a deal.

That feels more likely with the Rams already planning on parting ways with Cooper Kupp. Is it possible the Pittsburgh Steelers have an answer at quarterback that could translate to playoff wins?

Well according to CBS Sports, the Steelers wouldn’t be a bad landing spot at all for Stafford. The Steelers have embraced the revolving door aspect of the most important position on the field. 

With Russell Wilson and Justin Fields due for new deals, they could once again revamp the entire quarterback room for someone new. Wilson, for as good as he was when he first started in Pittsburgh, faltered to end the season, bringing more speculation on his return. 

The good thing with Stafford is he’s a winner. You won’t have to worry about a quarterback problem if they were able to work a deal to get Stafford. He was one play away from knocking off the Super Bowl champions in the Divisional Round. 

That’s good enough to convince just about any quarterback-needy team to put together a package to get Stafford. Especially when you look at the fact that he’s 37 years old and hasn’t shown any signs of being washed. 

Keep a close eye on what happens with Stafford. It’s likely he ends up on the move before the 2025 season kicks off and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Pittsburgh Steelers get aggressive in adding him to the mix.

NFL Rumors: Tee Higgins sends cryptic message as the sweepstakes for his services commence

Tee Higgins had a simple and ambiguous message ahead of his highly anticipated free agency journey: “Ima let yall know first,” Higgins posted to his X platform account.

What does that mean, well only Higgins himself can answer that and I’ll leave the speculation to you. The one thing is that if the Bengals don’t retain Higgins long-term, it’s going to be open season in trying to lock him down to a long-term contract. 

The New England Patriots have long been linked to Higgins as he’s the perfect free agent for the squad. Drake Maye showed strides in his rookie season, even earning a Pro Bowl spot as an alternate. The one thing he needs is a true No. 1 target. 

New England’s wide receiver room was horrible, to say the least. But with a couple moves, that could change almost instantly. The Patriots could even convince the San Francisco 49ers to send Deebo Samuel their way too, though it would probably cost more than they’re willing to pay. 

The Cincinnati Bengals actually have a lot of control over the free agency market, oddly enough. They have massive decisions to make around Ja’Marr Chase, Higgins and Trey Hendrickson. Whatever decision they make will have a collateral effect on the rest of the league. 

Only time will tell what will happen and what Higgins means by his post on the X platform. I guess we’ll just have to wait to hear it from him.