As Travis Kelce prepares to return to the football field for his 14th NFL season, Hall of Famer Cris Carter is low-key warning fans to enjoy his time in the league while they can.
“Andrew and I started with Travis before his rookie year in the NFL,” Carter, 60, wrote via Instagram on Monday, July 20, alongside a photo of the NFL legend with Kelce, 36, and a group of friends, including trailer Andrew Spruill. “Know the 🐐is preparing for THE LAST DANCE.”
The post seemingly implied that Carter knows something the rest of Us don’t — that the upcoming 2026 NFL season will be Kelce’s last.
“Next stop Canton/HOF,” Carter added, a nod to Kelce’s surefire future induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Spruill, 41, commented on Carter’s post, “What a ride it’s been!!!”
The group photo was snapped at Johnny O’s Gymnasium in Boca Raton, Florida, where Kelce has been training as he prepares to enter training camp. Kelce and the Chiefs open camp on Wednesday, July 29, at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri.
The upcoming season will be Kelce’s first as a married man — the tight end said “I do” to Taylor Swift at New York City’s Madison Square Garden earlier this month.
In announcing his return for another season in March, Kelce credited his then-fiancée with inspiring him to come back.
“We share the same love for what we do,” Kelce said on ESPN’s The Pat McAfee Show. “Fortunately, we’ve had this desire since we were kids in our selective professions. It’s amazing to see her keep going to the table, keep finding new things to write about, keep finding new melodies and things like that. On top of that, still seeing her have that love and joy in what she does.”
He added, “Of course that’s motivating. That’s motivating for anybody, let alone my fiancée. I’m going through something trying to figure out what exactly the future holds for me. Something like that definitely motivates me to say, ‘You know what, I’m not done either. I’ve still got some ideas in the back of my mind. I’ve still got some juice left to play this game.’”
Kelce admitted that he considered retiring at the end of last season, though he clarified his moment of contemplation was “short and brief.”
“The Chiefs knew where I was the entire time on it,” he told McAfee, 39. “You always need to take a step back, you always need to take a step back. Breathe. Let the emotions settle down and see where the body is and things like that.”
Kelce continued, “But I’m still in love with this game. I still love going to work, putting on the pads, grinding it out. Just playing the game.”
The Chiefs open the 2026 regular season at home against the Denver Broncos on September 14.
