'S--tty Feeling,' Travis Kelce Talks Chiefs Missing Playoffs amid Retirement Rumors

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce was not happy to cap off what could be his final NFL season with six straight losses and no playoff run.

Kelce, whose contract is currently set to expire this offseason, discussed the Chiefs' disappointing end to the 2025 season in Wednesday's episode of his New Heights podcast with his brother Jason Kelce.

"It's a tough way to go out, especially with the amount of success and the standard that you hold, you know, yourself and the team to going into the season and throughout the season," Kelce told his brother. "You try and look back on it, you know, right away and, you know, you try to learn from it and maybe even try to figure out where it all went wrong and how you could've been better in certain situations.

"It's just a s---ty feeling and a s---ty way to try and navigate one of the things you love to do most, and that's play football."

Kelce added that the feeling was "kind of embarrassing."

"But you keep it moving," Kelce said.

After losing star quarterback Patrick Mahomes to a season-ending left knee injury in Week 15, Kelce and the Chiefs finished out the 2025 season with three straight losses.

Kelce finished out his 13th NFL season with 76 catches for 851 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

While playing the 2025 campaign in the back half of a two-year deal, Kelce had been non-committal about whether he would consider returning for his age-37 season in 2026.

When speaking about the possibility on Wednesday's New Heights episode, however, Kelce clarified his return could depend on his health and how his body feels heading into next season.

"If my body can heal up, and rest up, and I can feel confident that I can go out there and give it another 18-, 20-, 21-week run, I think I would do it in a heartbeat," Kelce said. "I think right now, it's just finding that answer, and seeing how the body feels after this game and kind of when it all settles down."

Finding that answer was apparently easier for Kelce after the Chiefs made it to a third straight Super Bowl last season. The Chiefs tight told reporters after the end of the season on Sunday (h/t the Kansas City Star's Sam McDowell) that "last year was a little bit easier."

"I think I knew right away I wanted to kind of give this one a shot," Kelce said Sunday about his decision to return for 2025. "So, I don't know. We'll see."

Returning for 2026 could potentially allow give Kelce a shot at playing alongside Mahomes for a 10th straight season.

Mahomes underwent surgery on his torn ACL and MCL on Dec. 15. The Chiefs have projected a nine-month recovery timeline for the star quarterback, putting his estimated return around the first few weeks of the 2026 regular season in September.