Travis Kelce has lost 25 pounds since the end of the NFL season in February.
The Kansas City Chiefs’ tight end will be attending the team’s mini-camp from Tuesday through Thursday as the team prepares for the start of preseason in July. This will be the team’s first few practices since their loss against the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.
On Saturday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler revealed on SportsCenter that Kelce would be debuting “a bit of a slimmer look.”
“He’s told people close to him that he’s lost about 25 pounds this offseason,” he said. Fowler continued, saying the tight end “played a little bit heavier in 2024,” which resulted in career lows in both receiving yards and touchdowns.
“He vowed to change it, and he has,” the sports reporter added.
The NFL player’s new slimmed-down figure could be a sign that he wants to end his last season before retiring on a high note.
“This could be the last dance here for him,” Fowler said. “Mid-30s, still a productive player. They want to go to him on third down. Been declining a little bit. He’s trying to be slimmer and has gone hardcore this offseason to make it work.”
Since his team’s Super Bowl loss, Kelce has been prepared to hit the ground running in terms of returning to training. In an interview with The Athletic back in April, the Chiefs’ coach, Andy Reid, said that despite the delayed news Kelce wasn’t retiring, the tight end told him he would be returning to the team “less than a week” after the team’s Super Bowl loss.
“I just wanted him to put it out there and not me,” Reid said, revealing why he didn’t publicize the news himself. “I always like guys to step back (after the season), but he wants to come back and he’s training like crazy, too.”
At the time, Reid revealed that the plan for Kelce is to make sure he is supported in terms of the structure of the offense. Previously, Kelce has played a large role in the offensive line due to a large number of injuries.
Reid said that for Kelce to be more effective in their line-up, he may play less. “I’ll see when he comes back and see where he’s at,” Reid said.
“He’s learning when to come out when he needs it. We were banged up at the (receiver) positions, so that doesn’t help a tight end’s cause at all. The healthier we can be around him, he can still be productive.”