One of the biggest storylines entering the 2025 NFL offseason was whether Travis Kelce would hang up his cleats after the Super Bowl loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.
Kelce ultimately decided to run it back for another season, and one teammate of Kelce’s recently revealed what his pitch was to Kelce to return for a 13th NFL season.
Rashee Rice Reveals His Pitch for Kelce To Return
“I’m 95% of the reason he [Kelce] ain’t retiring,” said Kansas City Chiefs star wide receiver Rashee Rice on ‘Revolt Sports.’ “I told him he can’t go out like that … we’ve got to go win that. I’m gonna make sure we win that.”
Rashee says he told Kelce he couldn’t go out like that and helped him decide to stay next year😌 pic.twitter.com/RdfFqoiGpE
— Jenna (@jennaxkc) March 14, 2025
Kelce is coming off a down season in 2024, where he registered 97 receptions for 823 yards and three touchdowns in 16 games. The yardage and touchdown totals were Kelce’s lowest in an entire season in his NFL career.
However, even in a down season, Kelce still sits among the top tight ends in the NFL, finishing fifth in receiving yards and third in receptions in 2024, despite resting in Week 18.
Kelce has the third most career receiving yards and receptions by a tight end in NFL history, and his return to Kansas City will be massive for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City offense.
What Will Kansas City’s Offense Look Like in 2025?
Kelce rejoins an offense featuring Xavier Worthy, Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown, Isiah Pacheco, Kareem Hunt, Noah Gray, and a healthy Rice.
Rice suffered a torn ACL during the Week 4 game against the Los Angeles Chargers. The young receiver from SMU caught 79 passes for 938 yards and seven touchdowns as a rookie and appeared to be establishing himself as Mahomes’ number-one target in 2024 before the injury.
In three games in 2024, Rice caught 24 passes for 288 yards and two touchdowns. His return gives Kansas City a massive boost on offense and draws some defensive attention away from Worthy and Kelce.
Kansas City will look a bit different during this go around, as the team traded Joe Thuney to the Bears for a 2026 fourth-round draft pick. Additionally, Justin Reid, Josh Uche, DeAndre Hopkins, Justin Watson, and Samaje Perine all left in free agency.
Kelce and the Chiefs fell just short of becoming the first team in the Super Bowl era to win three straight Super Bowls. The team will look to get back to the top of the league and win another Lombardi trophy in what could be Kelce’s last season in the NFL.