Travis Kelce Reportedly Makes Final Decision On NFL Playing Career

This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.

Travis Kelce will likely return for a 14th season in 2026, though he isn’t certain to return to the Kansas City Chiefs. 

The All-Pro tight end is coming off a subdued 2025 campaign in which the Chiefs failed to make the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. 

While Kelce has spent his entire 13-year career with the AFC West franchise, The Athletic’s Dianna Russini and Jesse Newell are reporting that his representatives are expected to hold talks with other teams. 

“Based on conversations with several teams, TE Travis Kelce appears motivated to return to play a 14th season,” Russini also tweeted on Sunday. “The Chiefs remain very much in the mix to re-sign the three-time Super Bowl champion and four-time All-Pro.”

Previous reports indicated that Kelce was leaning toward returning to Kansas City for the 2026 season.

Chiefs Want Travis Kelce Back, But His Return Is Far From Guaranteed

It’s hard to imagine Kelce finding a new home after his storied career in KC. It was assumed that he would either retire or resign with the team he helped win three Super Bowls, yet that no longer appears to be the case. 

Russini’s wording suggests that the Chiefs want Kelce back and that if he ends up signing with another team, it would be his decision as opposed to them spurning him.

Chiefs GM Brett Veach recently made it clear that he would prefer Kelce to re-sign.

“Travis is the best. He’s an icon,” Veach said at the NFL Scouting Combine. “Hopefully, he comes back, and we’ll just kind of let that process play out.”

The team could face some difficulty getting a deal over the line due to its salary cap constraints. 

They have restructured Patrick Mahomes’ contract and released two notable veterans.

But there’s still some way to go in that regard.