Travis Kelce is reportedly planning to return to the Kansas City Chiefs for the 2026-2027 season.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport broke the news Monday morning.
“Back for more: #Chiefs future Hall of Fame TE Travis Kelce is expected to return to Kansas City for a 14th season, a message that’s been delivered to teams who will want him,” Rapoport’s X post read.
“At 36, Kelce’s play was at its usual level, landing him in the Pro Bowl. He’s loyal to KC & will stay.”
The team’s quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, has also appeared to confirm Kelce’s return as he shared an Instagram post showing off pictures of himself and Kelce in uniform, captioned with a clock and arrow emoji.
The Independent has reached out to Kelce’s representative and the Kansas City Chiefs for comment.
Toward the end of this past football season, Kelce — who is engaged to pop superstar Taylor Swift — admitted to struggling with a retirement decision after having an easier time the previous year.
He revealed in a New Heights podcast episode earlier this year, “Last year was a little bit easier. I think I knew right away I wanted to kind of give this one (year) a shot. We'll see.”
Kelce has previously been open about how fluid his thinking on retirement can be. Speaking with sports journalist Stephen A. Smith in January 2025, he admitted that his feelings “change every single day.”
“I love everything that I’m doing in this building, but at the end of the day, I’m not having that extreme success on the field as I have individually,” Kelce said. “I’ll reevaluate 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’s decision to return to the football field came after a difficult NFL season, as the Chiefs finished the season 6-11 — missing the NFL playoffs for the first time in a decade — and were plagued by injuries including Mahomes tearing his ACL in December.
However, following the season, Chiefs owner and CEO Clark Hunt said in a guest spot on NFL Network’s Good Morning Football that they would support Kelce if he did choose to come back.
“He had another great year, maybe not on par with where he was four or five years ago, but still had over 800 yards, and was really one of the leaders on the offensive side of the ball for us. So there’s no doubt in my mind that he can still play. We’re trying to be respectful and let him have the time that he needs to make a decision,” Hunt said during the January appearance.
The tight end’s contract with the Chiefs is set to expire Wednesday after signing a two-year, $34.25 million extension in April 2024 to stay with the team. As he enters free agent status, it has not yet been confirmed if Kelce will be returning to the Kansas City, or if he will be picked up by a different team.
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