Following a loss in Super Bowl 59, one of the NFL‘s most notable and most talked about players has a decision to make. After 12 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs, tight end Travis Kelce is considering retirement. His 2024 season saw him achieve a career-low 823 yards with just three touchdowns during the regular season.
From one legendary tight end to another, former New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers star Rob Gronkowski voiced his opinion about Kelce and his upcoming decision.
Rob Gronkowski Shares His Thoughts on Travis Kelce
During an interview on “Up & Adams,” four-time Super Bowl champion Rob Gronkowski made his feelings clear about the 35-year-old tight end.
“I mean those two together are an unstoppable duo. It’s a different situation from Tom [Brady] and me because Tom was 10 years older than me and I was a young buck. That’s usually the situation when it comes to a wide receiver/quarterback duo. This one’s different because Travis is so much older than Patrick Mahomes, about six or seven years, and they have this chemistry that’s unbelievable.”
Rob Gronkowski weighs in on Travis Kelce's future in the NFL.
"I believe he can go at least another 2 years. We're talking his stats being down. How are your stats down if you have 80 plus catches at 35 years old?” pic.twitter.com/1TbEeN3r06
— Brad Henson Productions (@BradHensonPro) February 18, 2025
Kelce is 35 and will be 36 by the end of the 2025 season; Mahomes is 29, though he will be 30 in September 2025. The two have played together for eight seasons, with Mahomes being the starter for the latter seven.
“You don’t really see that with a quarterback that much younger than a wide receiver or tight end, so it’s great to see what Travis Kelce has done with Patrick Mahomes and how he has been developing Patrick Mahomes throughout his career. You got to definitely give Travis Kelce credit for doing that, big time.”
When asked specifically about Kelce and his pending decision on retirement from the NFL, Gronkowski had this to say: “With Travis’ career in the future, I believe he can go at least another two years. The guy had 85+ catches this year. We’re talking that his stats are down? Are you kidding me? How are your stats down if you have 80+ catches at 35 years old?”
“I think I’ve only had 85+ catches one time in my career, and I was 22 years old, and I think I had 90 catches that year. All the other years I had 50-70 catches, so I mean 80+ means he is a security blanket, and he gets first downs whenever [the Chiefs] need them.”
“If you watch him run routes, he is very crisp and very smooth as well. He is bending when he stops, he’s coming out of his breaks — it’s just one of those years where the ball isn’t going to be thrown to you in the end zone every single time. Ultimately, it’s up to him, but I believe that he can have 70+ catches over the next two seasons if he wants to come back, easily.”
With retirement at Kelce’s doorstep, the Chiefs have given him a March 14 deadline to inform them about his decision.