INDIANAPOLIS — About four minutes apart, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach and Kansas City head coach Andy Reid gave slightly different views of where the franchise stands with tight end Travis Kelce. They agreed on one point: There is no deadline for his decision about playing in 2025.
“We did have a chance to talk before they left,” Reid said Tuesday just before the noon hour of the status of Kelce. “That’s up to Travis. At this point, it’s ‘Get out of town. They’ve played a lot of football here. So, step back, then we’ll talk.'”
Kelce was reportedly given a deadline of March 14, one day before an $11.5 million roster bonus is due to trigger in the final year of his contract. But Veach said adamantly, “There is no deadline.”
Veach said he expects Kelce to play after their most recent conversation.
“He was fired up about being here,” Veach said. “He has one more year under contract. We left it at he’d be back and we’re excited to have him back. As far as I’m concerned, there is no deadline.”
Kelce, 35, said earlier this month he was weighing his future in the wake of the Chiefs’ 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX. Kelce wound up with four catches for 39 yards.
“I know everybody wants to know whether I’m playing next year and right now, I’m just kicking everything down the road. I’m kicking every can I can down the road. I’m not making any crazy decisions,” Kelce said on his “New Heights” podcast.
A four-time first-team All-Pro and 10-time Pro Bowl choice through 12 NFL seasons, Kelce would carry a $19.8 million cap hit in 2025.
Kelce made 97 receptions for 823 yards in the 2024 regular season, his lowest yardage total since 2014. He posted seven consecutive 1,000-yard years from 2016-22.
–Jeff Reynolds, Field Level Media
