Over a year removed from retirement, Jason Kelce is still keeping busy. He’s broadcasting, podcasting, and spending as much time with his wife and kids as he can. Yet, he says he doesn’t miss playing football, which he expressed on a recent episode of New Heights.
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The former center spent a long career with the Philadelphia Eagles, playing one of the most demanding positions in football. For 13 seasons, he banged heads and bodies with opposing defensive linemen. In his final years, he was constantly dog-piled whenever the team ran the patented “Tush Push.”
At this point, Jason has more than earned his retirement. Regardless, his brother, Travis Kelce, believes he could make a return to the league if he wanted to.
The topic came up when the Kelce duo were talking about Brandon Graham coming out of retirement. Jason said he’s excited to watch Graham play for the Eagles and added that if you aren’t ready to stop playing, then you shouldn’t retire. This led Travis to say:
“Now you’re a lean 265… They could use you more than just at the offensive line. We could use you at tight end now,” Travis playfully told his brother on New Heights.
In high school, Jason was an All-League player at both running back and linebacker. But he’s never been asked to play tight end. That’s why the suggestion from Travis was a bit silly, and the elder Kelce took it as a joke.
Jason immediately let his brother know how his body is feeling amid retirement.
“I would go out there, and my body would crumble if I tried to play football at this point,” he responded. “I knew my body was done when I was done. And the moment I stopped, that following year, I’m spraining my calf jumping rope. I’m pulling pecs, trying to bench press. I don’t have it anymore, and I’m very comfortable admitting that.”
Even though it was meant as a joke, the revelation shed light on the struggles Jason’s body has faced adjusting to life after an NFL career. He played a position literally referred to as “the trenches.” Being an offensive lineman is a thankless job, yet Kelce took on the challenge head-on and never asked for any favors.
All in all, it shows that Jason won’t be returning to the league anytime soon. And he shouldn’t. The Kelce brothers have become such a hot commodity that they don’t really need football to stay relevant or financially secure. Travis is set up for life whenever he decides to hang up the cleats as well.
And with a wedding on the way with Taylor Swift, that retirement could come sooner rather than later, meaning that the NFL won’t have a Kelce on the field for the first time since 2011.
