Jason Kelce’s decision about the future of his pro football career is coming today. The question of if Kelce, 36, would retire following this past NFL season has been top of mind since his last game on Jan. 15, but the Philadelphia Eagles star has yet to make an official announcement.
On Monday morning, Kelce tweeted that he would let the world know at 1 p.m. ET this afternoon about whether he’ll play football again come this fall. “No Keg videos this year, I have come to a decision and will address it at a press conference this afternoon,” the longtime Eagles center tweeted. The tweet references a fake-out video the team posted after last season showing Kelce drinking a beer and announcing he would retire from hosting a local radio show, not the NFL.
A number of fans began to reply to Kelce’s tweet with gratitude and congratulations on his 13-year NFL career, leaping to the assumption that he will announce later Monday that his playing days are officially done.
Picked in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft, Kelce won one Super Bowl with Philadelphia in 2018 and was selected to the NFL Pro Bowl seven times throughout his decorated career – including each of the last five seasons.
Kelce and the Eagles jumped out to a 10-1 start this past season and were thought to be Super Bowl favorites after winning the NFC Championship the year before and losing the championship to the Kansas City Chiefs, where Kelce’s younger brother Travis Kelce plays.
However, the Eagles’ hot streak cooled off late in the season, losing five of their last six games and finishing the year 11-6. Philadelphia lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 32-9 in the first round of the NFL Playoffs in January. Cameras showed an emotional Kelce hugging his longtime offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland during the game’s final play.
Soon afterwards, the 13-year veteran jogged towards the stands to look for his family, sharing another emotional hug with his wife Kylie and a handshake with his father Ed Kelce, who traveled to Florida to be there for the game. Both the NFL and ESPN reported that Kelce told his Eagles teammates after the game that he planned to retire. However, Kelce remained mum about his decision after the game and in the months since.
