Chiefs’ Chris Jones makes emotional plea to Travis Kelce as retirement rumors swirl

Chris Jones made an impassioned plea this week to Travis Kelce for the Chiefs’ star tight end to play another season. 

Kelce’s future is up in the air as Kansas City’s season winds to a close with just one game left on the schedule after the Chiefs lost to the Broncos on Christmas Day.

“I hope not, man,” Jones said in response to a question about Kelce earlier this week. “We have just been through so much together, and Travis has been a pivotal part of this offense for so long and he’s been like a brother … I hope this isn’t the last year. I hope he gives it one more year. Just one more.”

Thursday would mark Kelce’s final game at Arrowhead Stadium should he choose to hang up his cleats, and that fact wasn’t lost on anyone, including Jones. 

Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones talks to reporters following an NFL football game against the Denver Broncos Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025. AP

Jones was one of the first players to wait for the Chiefs’ tight end as he was coming off the field.

Kelce, 36, has said his retirement decision will come after the season, as he’s faced more questions following the season-ending injury to Patrick Mahomes in Week 15. 

Kelce said it was a “harsh reality” when a reporter recently asked him if he caught his final pass from Mahomes.

“I was like, ‘Oh man, that’s a dark way to look at it,’” Kelce said during an interview that aired on the Prime Video broadcast on Christmas. “I think, I don’t know, I’ll always be able to go out there in the backyard slinging around with the old Texas gunslinger. But you know that day is going to come. If it’s already happened, I can feel pretty content with how many times he’s connected on the field with me and how much success and how much fun we’ve had playing this game.”

Travis Kelce #87 of the Kansas City Chiefs leaves the field following the 20-13 loss against the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium on December 25, 2025 in Kansas City, Missouri. Getty Images

He also addressed the decision that he has to make about his future. 

“I know when it’s over, it’s over,” Kelce said. “I feel like I still have a lot of love for this game, I feel like if I came back it’d just be to answer that flame in my heart that I still love this thing.”