Travis Kelce’s Teammate Begs Him to Keep Playing with Chiefs Instead of Retiring: ‘Can’t Go Out Like That’

As Travis Kelce mulls his future in the NFL, one teammate has a prediction that “he’ll be back.”

In a guest spot on FS1’s The Facility, Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu said he believes the 35-year-old tight end will ultimately decide to return for his 13th season in the league.

“He’s a Hall of Famer from the moment he says, ‘I’m done,’ ” Omenihu, 27, said. “But I think Trav has a lot left. I think Trav is an extreme competitor. I think he’s somebody that loves the game. And I think in the storied career that he’s had, going out like that, in my opinion, wouldn’t be something that he would do.”

On the eve of Super Bowl 2025, the New Heights podcaster offered his own perspective in an interview with Westwood One Sports on Saturday, Feb. 8.

”I think I found it all. I just gotta, you know, keep it all,” Kelce said. “I absolutely love where I am in life. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been. I’m enjoying coming in to work and what I do for a profession in my career. And I have an unbelievable support of family and friends who are chasing me down here for yet another Super Bowl,” he said.

But after the Philadelphia Eagles stunned the defending champs and upended the team’s attempt to three-peat, the athlete’s actions sparked retirement talk.

Kelce was heard along the sidelines towards the end of the game praising his good friend and quarterback Patrick Mahomes.

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“Forever dawg. You know that,” Kelce told the signal-caller. “I owe you a lot for what you’ve done.”

And while Kelce cut short a session with members of the media after the game before the topic could be raised, Mahomes addressed the question head-on, telling reporters that he would “let Travis make that decision on his own.”

“He’s given so much to this team and to the NFL,” Mahomes, 29, said. “And he’s been such a joy, not only for me to work with, but for people to watch.”

According to a report from The Athletic, Kelce has until March 14 to tell the team whether he’ll return. On March 15, he’s due an $11.5 million roster bonus.

For Omenihu at least, the decision is clear-cut.

“This would be my message to Trav: ‘Big dog, we — the whole organization — can’t go out like that,’ ” he said on FS1.

Omenihu added, “So, I believe that he’ll be back.”