Travis Kelce Explains Return to Chiefs for 2025 NFL Season: 'I F--king Love' Football

After confirming he would be returning to the Kansas City Chiefs for his 13th season in 2025, Travis Kelce explained his decision to continue his career.

On the latest episode of the New Heights podcast (starts at 5:00 mark), Kelce simply said he wants to keep going because "I f--king love playing the game of football."

Kelce told Pat McAfee, who cited it as "source(s)", last week he was returning in 2025 because he's got a bad taste in his mouth with how last season ended and he "can't go out like that!"

Kelce then confirmed the news on the New Heights X account with the help of the famous clip from The Wolf of Wall Street.

Even though Kelce didn't address his future in the immediate aftermath of Kansas City's 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl 59, Patrick Mahomes expressed confidence his star tight end was capable of playing if he wanted to keep going.

Kelce, 35, has started to show signs of decline in recent years. He hasn't hit the 1,000-yard mark in each of the past two seasons after surpassing it in seven consecutive years from 2016 to '22.

The 2024 season saw Kelce post his fewest receiving yards (823), yards per reception (8.5) and touchdowns (three) since his rookie year in 2013 when he only played one game due to a knee injury.

Even with some dip in performance, Kelce remains Mahomes' favorite target. The 10-time Pro Bowler led the Chiefs in targets (133), receptions (97) and receiving yards in 2024.

Things are set up for Kelce to potentially have an easier time putting up numbers in 2025. If the Chiefs get Rashee Rice back healthy from the torn LCL that ended his season in Week 4 and continued development from Xavier Worthy, they're skill-position group will look much better than it did it for most of last season.

Kelce may not command as much attention from opposing defenses as he used to, but he's still capable of stepping up in big moments. His best game of the 2024 campaign was in the AFC Divisional Round against the Houston Texans with 117 yards and one touchdown on seven receptions.