Travis Kelce Jokes He ‘Had to Juggle’ the Fact He’d Make More Money Not Playing Football in Retirement Decision

The Kansas City Chiefs tight end discussed his decision to sign on for another season in the NFL on the latest episode of his and brother Jason Kelce’s ‘New Heights’ podcast

Travis Kelce’s not in the NFL for the money. 

The Kansas City Chiefs star, 35, recently shared that he’s planning to return to professional football for another season after the team’s painful Super Bowl 2025 loss, and on the Wednesday, March 5, episode of his and brother Jason Kelce’s New Heights podcast, the tight end went into detail about his decision. 

Jason, who retired from the Eagles in 2024, asked his brother for some further insight into his choice, asking, “Why are you playing another season? Why are you going to go out there, risk injury and make less money than you could make not playing football?”

Travis laughed at the question, jokingly replying, “That was kinda the one I had to juggle right there.”

In his off-season, the athlete has taken on plenty of projects including acting in Ryan Murphy’s horror series Grotesquerie and the Adam Sandler comedy Happy Gilmore 2. He’s also the host of Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity? and served as an executive producer on the film My Dead Friend Zoe. 

However, Travis’ ties to football remain strong. 

“The biggest thing is that I f—— love playing the game of football. I love playing,” he shared of his decision to return. “I still think I can play it at a high level, and possibly at a higher level than I did last year.” 

There’s been plenty of chatter about Travis’ post-football plans, including working in Hollywood and with his slew of endorsement deals. 

“Even just seeing what a difference it’s made having him involved in our project,” My Dead Friend Zoe producer Paul Scanlan exclusively told PEOPLE last month, adding that Travis “100 percent” has a future in Hollywood. “He’s such a likable guy and he’s a good actor. I mean, he’s proven that he’s been in some good material. And he’s a good producer,” Scanlan said.

Travis has long talked about his post-football future. In February 2024, he told reporters, “I’ll dabble into everything though just to see if I have fun doing it. And I know there’s definitely Hollywood talks out there, but I’ve been focused on football throughout the season so I’ll probably have a lot of those meetings and conversations when it is all said and done.”

And when it came time to make a decision about whether he’d retire, Travis noted he went with his gut. 

“It’s just off a feel. I’m not a big measure the pros and cons [guy],” he explained. “I just go off a feel. Pure gut feeling … I pulled the trigger as soon as I knew that feeling.”

Travis broke the news that he was returning for another season through a text on The Pat McAfee Show on Feb. 27. He reportedly told host McAfee, 37, in the message that he was “coming back for sure” and added, “Gonna try and get to the best shape I’ve been this offseason and get back to the mountaintop.”

The athlete also reportedly added, “Got a real bad taste in my mouth with how I played in that last game and how I got the guys ready for battle. I can’t go out like that!!!!”