Travis Kelce has all of his focus on finding a way to beat the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday and help the Kansas City Chiefs advance to yet another Super Bowl despite being underdogs,
While this has been a massive season for Kelce off the field, his on-field production took a slight decline and there has been plenty of speculation if he will announce his retirement from the NFL sooner rather than later.
With his 11th season coming to an end and his brother Jason linked to retirement reports — although now he’s walked them back a bit — the Chiefs star made a point to address the rumors on a recent episode of the podcast he created with Jason called “New Heights,” that has emerged as one of the top podcasts in the country.
In a bonus video of the “New Heights” podcast with his brother, and Eagles center, Jason, Kelcee, Travis said that the thrill of playoff games will continue drawing him back because it gets “you f–king excited, man.”
“I haven’t found something outside of football that’s going to challenge me like playoff football,” Kelce said. “And I don’t know if I’ll ever find that. And that’s one of the things that’ll make me play this game until the wheels fall off. I know that I get to accept these challenges and these difficult games, these difficult matchups, the question of whether or not we’ll prevail — and coming up big for the guys next to me.
“It’s an energy and an excitement that I haven’t found anywhere else in the world, and it’s something that I definitely cherish.”
Travis Kelce wasn’t specifically asked about retirement — the brothers were breaking down the Chiefs’ AFC Championship game against the Ravens on Sunday — on the podcast, but his comment followed a segment by former “Sunday Night Football” sideline reporter Michele Tafoya in an interview with CBS Sports, where she revealed that she thinks Kelce would join Jason in retirement.
Kelce also revealed in a Wall Street Journal interview published in November that he thinks about it “more than anyone could ever imagine.”
Recent reports have stated the Kelce brothers are poised to be the next hottest duo in sports media and they will have every network and streaming service lining up to ink a deal with them once they both formally decide to hang up their cleats.
Jason has also been involved in retirement speculation after the 36-year-old center and the Eagles lost to the Buccaneers in the wild-card round.
He reportedly told teammates in the locker room that he was retiring, according to ESPN, and the broadcast’s camera captured an emotional Kelce near the end of Philadelphia’s stunning loss.
But during a podcast episode later in the week, Jason Kelce didn’t confirm his plans and instead said there’s too much emotion following those games to “fully grasp” and make a retirement decision.
Travis Kelce’s Mom Shares Rare Prediction About Future For Her Son And His Brother Jason
Jason Kelce hasn’t made his retirement official, and while both brothers can still play at a high level, it’s up to them to judge the wear and tear on their bodies and make the best decision for their future.
In an interview with PEOPLE, Donna spoke on Jason’s future, as well as the future of her other Super Bowl-winning son, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, saying she believed both will likely remain in the game of football upon retiring.
“[I] can’t believe that they wouldn’t be in the future involved with football in some capacity because they love it so much,” she said. “They love the people, and they love the coaches. They just love the whole aspect about it.”
While nobody knows when either Kelce brother will make it official, it’s almost certain the duo will parlay their podcast idea — which was brilliant timing considering the level of attention Travis has gotten since he began dating Taylor Swift— and they will get a blank check from whichever streaming service or network they choose.