Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce in uniform

There were a lot of rumors prior to Super Bowl 59 that Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce would retire after the Super Bowl. But after their humiliating defeat against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce announced that he would run it back for another season.

On Thursday, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes weighed in on Kelce at organized team activities (OTAs). He turned some heads and raised some eyebrows by declaring that “you would never know” if he was retiring or not.

Mahomes explained that Kelce has so much passion talking about football that there’s no reason to believe he’s on his “last ride.”

“If it’s the last ride, you would never know,” Mahomes said, via NFL.com. “The way he’s talking about football. The way he’s talking about working and trying to be even better this year than he was last year. He doesn’t seem like a guy like it’s his last ride, like he’s tired of the job.”

It’s easy to understand why people were so sure that 2024 was going to be Kelce’s final season. He was putting up career-low averages on a number of major categories and in many instances harmed more than helped with his inability to make the kinds of big plays that he used to.

But Kelce made it clear in March that he still loves playing football and believes he can continue playing at a high level.

“I think the biggest thing is that I (expletive) love playing the game of football,” Kelce said. “I love playing. I still feel like I can play it at a high level and possibly at a higher level than I did last year. I don’t think it was my best outing.”

Mahomes and Kelce on the field.

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA – FEBRUARY 06: Patrick Mahomes #15 and Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs warm up during a practice ahead of Super Bowl LIX at Tulane University’s Yulman Stadium on on February 06, 2025 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Gregory Shamus/Getty Images

Kelce has pretty clearly put the ball in the Chiefs’ court as far as his future goes. As long as the team is willing to keep him on the roster, he’s willing to give his all every Sunday.

Canton is pretty much guaranteed to come calling for Kelce someday. His postseason dominance as a tight end alone will see him through, though his three rings, 10 Pro Bowl selections and four All-Pro selections help his case a lot too.