Would a record setting three-peat be a perfect way to call an end to the career of one of the greatest tight ends in the history of the NFL? One analyst thinks so.
Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce has been the subject of rumors surrounding his retirement all season long.
The 35-year-old experienced a dip in production this season, leading many to wonder if he may consider hanging up the cleats after the 2024 campaign comes to a close.
Speaking on ESPN’s First Take, former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky believes that the possibility of Kelce wrapping up his career after a third title is a ‘very real thing’.
‘Kelce is fully capable of being the difference-maker. I think he’s got one great run left,’ Orlovsky said.
‘I think if he goes and has that vintage Kelce performance, which I fully, one, think he’s capable of, and two, will do, and they go on and three-peat, I think retirement becomes a very real thing for Travis Kelce.
‘There would be nothing else to accomplish. He’d be arguably the greatest tight end of all time. He would be the tight end that was part of [Chiefs] only three-peat in the history of the NFL.
‘He’s obviously later in his career. I don’t think there would be anything left. And I think he’s got one, elite, great, difference-maker, vintage, ‘Oh my Gosh, he did it again’ run left in him.’
Kelce has been addressing the rumors about his retirement throughout the week as he goes on a media tour before KC opens their playoffs this weekend against the Houston Texans in the AFC Divisional round.
‘I love everything that I’m doing … but at the end of the day, I’m not having that extreme success on the field,’ Kelce said on ‘The Stephen A. Smith Show’. ‘I’m excited for these next couple of games … to finish this season off.
‘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.’
Kelce also says he’s felt nothing but fully supported by his pop star girlfriend, Taylor Swift.
‘She’s fully encouraging me to enjoy playing this game,’ Kelce told Smith, adding, ‘I got all the support in the world to keep chasing these dreams.’
Kelce had a slow start to the campaign and it ended with one of his lowest production seasons in his career.
The 823 receiving yards he put up and the three touchdown catches he had were both the lowest he’s ever had since his rookie campaign.
It was this rocky start that led many NFL analysts to suggest that the 35-year old might be better off calling it a career after this season.
Other analysts blamed Kelce’s partying over the offseason, suggesting that the tight end’s jet-setting lifestyle was responsible for his slump.
But Kelce is known for his success in the playoffs and has the chance to erase the early-season narratives when the Chiefs host Houston on Saturday.
