Travis Kelce's stardom has grown exponentially over the past few seasons. While already a popular NFL player, Kelce's celebrity ascended to ‘new heights' thanks to the Kansas City Chiefs' success, his podcast with brother Jason Kelce, and after it became known Travis was dating music superstar Taylor Swift. And while he doesn't plan to retire immediately, Travis apparently wants to follow in Tom Brady's footsteps.
An outgoing, willing media darling, Kelce revealed on a recent episode of his and Jason's ‘New Heights' podcast what he would like to do when he hangs up the cleats.
“I want to broadcast when I’m done playing,” Travis said before mimicking a classic sports broadcaster. “I want to be right here and tell them about the games, the old ball coach, ladies and gentlemen. I want to do that. I want to be the talking head that calls the games.”
Brady, who played 23 seasons in the NFL, is set to become FOX's top NFL color commentator this season. But it sounds like Travis would actually prefer to be in Joe Buck's spot and become a play-by-play announcer.
Travis Kelce speaks on retirement during Chiefs media day
There was a belief that Travis Kelce would announce his retirement following the 2023 season, which featured Kelce's stardom reaching its peak but his play on the field slipping. During the regular season, Kelce fell short of 1,000 receiving yards (by 16 yards) for the first time since 2015 and caught 5 touchdowns, his lowest figure since 2019. In the playoffs, however, Kelce caught 32 passes, NFL tight ends record, for 355 yards and 3 touchdowns en route to a second consecutive and third total Super Bowl title, proving that retirement talk may have been premature.
During the Kansas City Chiefs' media day, Kelce explained his thought process on retirement.
“I can't put a specific timeframe on it,” Kelce said. “I enjoy coming to work every single day. Of course, I recognize there are opportunities beyond football for me. But when I'm here, I feel like a kid again.
“I'm going to keep playing until the wheels fall off. Hopefully, that's not anytime soon. It's clear that I'm closer to the end of my career than the beginning. I need to ensure I'm prepared for life after football as well.”
Kelce is also more aware of the reality of retiring from the NFL after his brother Jason did so this offseason. Jason, who had reportedly considered retirement for multiple years, decided to end his NFL career with the Philadelphia Eagles after 13 seasons in an emotional announcement in March for which Travis was present.
Similar to Travis' apparent desire, Jason chose to enter into the media realm following retirement. Jason is set to be a part of ESPN's ‘Monday Night Countdown' show and will continue to host the podcast with his brother.
Whatever Travis chooses to do in retirement, he, like Jason, will have plenty of options. Since becoming one of the most well-known players in the NFL, Travis likely could turn to sports broadcasting or even possibly transition to mainstream television roles similar to longtime New York Giants defensive end Michael Strahan, who, in addition to working on FOX's NFL pregame show, serves as co-host of ‘Good Morning America' and has become a fixture on national television outside of football.
Follow Us
Subscribe
