Travis Kelce has made a significant leap in terms of stardom in 2024.
For more than a decade, anyone who slightly paid attention to the NFL was familiar with the Kansas City Chiefs dynamic tight end who was Patrick Mahomes’ go-to pass-catcher in the current dynasty run under head coach Andy Reid.
But then Taylor Swift entered the equation. Suddenly, millions of people that had never tuned into an NFL game (yes, they do exist), began learning about Kelce as it became public he was dating the biggest, most iconic superstar in the world.
Travis Kelce has continued to play well on the gridiron — though there is speculation abut his future beyond this season as he’s aging and is getting more off-the-field opportunities than ever.
It’s hard to turn on the TV without seeing a commercial featuring the Kansas City Chiefs star, and then he made arguably the smartest move of his carer.
Jason Kelce — a longtime veteran center for the Philadelphia Eagles who seems to command the spotlight wherever he goes — teamed up with his brother Travis at the right time, when as his name was making a meteoric rise in pop culture, to launch the “New Heights Podcast.”
The premise is simple, Travis and Jason Kelce talk about their lives off the field, share stories from behind-the-scenes and discuss major topics in sports and pop culture.
The podcast has risen to the top of the charts and is currently one of the most downloaded shows in the entire world.
So what’s next? Jason Kelce already announced his retirement from the NFL and many believe Travis is close to doing the same. Regardless, the Kelce brothers are viewed as the next superstars in the new-age of sports media where former players like Pat McAfee, have changed the game completely.
It’s a casual brand of sports media for the modern fan and network executives are eating it up.
Kansas City Chiefs Tight End Travis Kelce And Brother Jason Expected To Get Major Network Deal As Next Media Superstars
We’ve seen the Manning brothers all over our TVs and phones and set a precedent when it comes to two former NFL players taking over the media world.
Many top media executives believe the Kelce brothers will be even bigger.
“I don’t know if and when either or both will formally retire but once both do, they are a natural TV and media attraction,” former EVP of digital and print media for ESPN John Kosner told OutKick. “They are All-Pro performers who are smart, fun and authentic, appealing to everyone, just like the Mannings and Charles Barkley. That is super hard to find and extremely valuable in our polarized country.”
While there will undoubtedly be a bidding war between networks for Travis Kelce and his brother, Kosner made a prediction on the specific streaming service that will land the Kansas City Chiefs star and his brother Jason, who thrived for the Eagles for so long.
“I really like Amazon as a target [for the brothers] including some sort of shopping angle and maybe also featuring their mom,” Kosner added
With Netflix now entering the live sports broadcast business with a wild $5 billion purchase of the WWE’s Monday Night Raw rights, the competition is only growing for who can snag the Kelce brothers.
Eric Bischoff, who later went to the WWE and became a WWE Hall of Famer knows a thing or two about developing and selling characters on television. He created and was part of the famous nWo wrestling stable led by Hulk Hogan, Scott Hall, and Kevin Nash which single-handedly transformed television ratings and the sports entertainment industry still to this day.
He believes the Kelce brothers have all the intangibles to become superstars in front of the camera.
They are the Mannings with character version 2.0. My bet is their agents are already in negotiations,” Senior Vice President and Executive Producer of World Championship Wrestling (WCW) Eric Bischoff told me.
Kosner agrees and believes Travis Kelce and his brother Jason are the next major targets for nearly every network and streaming service.
“I bet the Kelce combo is atop the draft boards at every network and sports media company including the streaming companies. I could see TV networks pitching them for both NFL and morning show work as well.”
For now, Kelce is focused on beating the Baltimore Ravens when the Kansas City Chiefs come to town on Sunday, but the future is obviously bright whether it’s on the field of off, for both of the Kelce brothers.
