The Kansas City Chiefs are looking to put a brutal Super Bowl 59 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles behind them. Following the game, there was uncertainty regarding star tight end Travis Kelce's status for the 2025 season and beyond, as he has been thinking about retirement. But Kelce shut that all down by telling Pat McAfee that he's ready to go for the 2025 season, as he's not ready to "go out" like the Chiefs did against the Eagles.
Kelce also followed through on a promise he made at the end of the season.
During an appearance on ESPN's "SportsCenter" on Saturday, senior NFL reporter Jeremy Fowler spoke of Kelce's upcoming appearance at Chiefs minicamp. Fowler revealed that Kelce is going to report to camp in much slimmer shape and that the tight end told those around him that he's lost about 25 pounds this offseason.
The #Chiefs will see a slimmer Travis Kelce at minicamp next week.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) June 14, 2025
(@SportsCenter with @KevinNegandhi) pic.twitter.com/WFDrnkEGq7
"He will debut a bit of a slimmer look. He's told people close to him that he's lost about 25 pounds this offseason. He played a little heavier in 2024, it was sort of a thing. He vowed to change it and he has.
"As we talked about before, this could be the last dance here for him. Mid-30s, still a productive player. They want to go to him on third down, but declining a little bit. He's trying to be slimmer and has gone hardcore this offseason to make it work in what could be his final season."
Travis Kelce slims down ahead of potential final season
As Fowler brings up, Kelce was playing at a higher weight in 2024 than usual. That year, Kelce wasn't as productive in the regular season as he usually is. Kelce posted career-lows in receiving yards (823) and receiving touchdowns (three). Even in the playoffs, Kelce caught 13 passes for 175 yards and a touchdown on 18 targets, his lowest numbers since the 2018 playoff run.
Retirement talk has followed Kelce in recent years. Around Super Bowl 58, Kelce said he would retire from the NFL if Chiefs head coach Andy Reid were going to retire. Ultimately, Reid and Kelce returned for the 2024 season. Then, there was the uncertainty following the Chiefs' blowout loss in Super Bowl 59. But, Kelce is obviously giving it another go.
Kelce is making sure that he will be in the best condition heading into the season, as he seeks out his fourth Super Bowl championship. When Kelce does call it quits, he will go down as one of the best players at his position in NFL history. But for now, he's not done yet, and he's more motivated than ever to hoist another Lombardi Trophy.