In the three-plus weeks following the Kansas City Chiefs’ 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, tight end Travis Kelce was grieving.
He admitted in a previous episode of his “New Heights” podcast that the Eagles broke his heart when they foiled the Chiefs’ bid to become the first NFL team to three-peat as Super Bowl champions.
And if that weren’t enough to deal with, Kelce also had to decide whether he wanted to return for his 13th NFL season or retire and ride off into the sunset with girlfriend Taylor Swift.
But during this week’s episode of “New Heights,” Kelce disclosed that he was disappointed in himself for not playing better and for not bringing his “A” game to the Super Bowl.
And after watching the tape over again, Kelce also divulged he felt an immense amount of disappointment for letting his teammates down with his four-catch, 39-yard performance against Philadelphia, which prompted him to make a promise to the Chiefs and their fans after he announced he’s coming back for the 2025 season.
“I want to give it a good run,” Kelce said. “I got a bad taste in my mouth on how I ended the year and how well I was playing and how accountable I was for the people around me. I love so many people in Kansas City, both in that facility and that community, it’s home for me now and I don’t want to leave that life.
“I put in a lot of hard work and focus into being the best that I can for KC, and last year it didn’t end well for us. I feel like there’s a responsibility in me to play out the contract that I initially signed to give Kansas City and the Chiefs organization everything I’ve got, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Though Kelce posted a career-low 823 yards receiving and three touchdowns in 2024, he still ranked in the top 10 among tight ends in most categories. If he makes good on his promise to give everything he has in 2025, opposing defensive coordinators could have their work cut out for them.
Kelce has one more year left on his contract with a $19.8 million cap hit and an $11.5 million roster bonus that’s set to kick in on March 14.
There have been rumors the Chiefs will either cut Kelce and re-sign him to a cheaper contract or sign him to an extension, which would lower his cap hit and save the Chiefs roughly $12.79 million in cap space.