Chiefs’ Travis Kelce sends emotional playoff message to fans amid retirement talk
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce told fans on Friday what playoff football meant to him ahead of their AFC Divisional Round matchup against the Houston Texans.
The message came as Kelce spoke of retirement on “The Stephen A. Smith Show” earlier in the week.
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“Playoff football is the most meaningful football that you’ll ever play in your life,” he said in a video posted to the Chiefs’ Instagram account. “I cherish every single play, man. I really do. When you’re in it, you’re always trying to strive for greatness.
“Being greater than what you are. You know, obviously there’s a historic run and something that we can achieve that no other team has ever achieved. You know, that fuels you.”
Kelce admitted on the podcast he would “re-evaluate” some things come the offseason.
“I love everything that I’m doing in this building, but at the end of the day I’m not having that extreme success on the field as I have individually,” Kelce told Smith. “… I’ll re-evaluate it like I always do, and I’ll probably tell myself how much I love this thing, and I’ll come back next year.
“I still love coming into the building every day, does it get hard, yeah, but I’m not doing it for the stats. I’m doing it for the greatness, the legacy that we’ve created here in Kansas City,” he added “… I can’t fathom what it would feel like just being able to say I’m satisfied because I’m still hungry to go and get something right now.”
Kelce faced all kinds of criticism during the season, with accusations flying about him being washed up or spending too much time with his girlfriend, Taylor Swift. He still managed to have 97 catches for 823 yards and three touchdowns in 16 games.
Even at age 35, Kelce was healthy for the entire season and only missed Week 18 as the Chiefs decided to rest their starters, having already wrapped up a bye week. With the whiff of retirement entering the air as the season enters the final stretch, Kelce was asked whether Swift had any thoughts about him calling it a career.
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Kelce said he has support from Swift to keep playing if he wants to.
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