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Adam Teicher
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City Chiefs were given their rings for winning the 2024 AFC championship on Wednesday, but Travis Kelce sounded as if he wasn’t interested in receiving his.
“I’m only interested in Super Bowl rings,” Kelce said after the Chiefs concluded their second minicamp practice. “I know what the AFC championship means to this organization and the [Hunt] family and the 15 wins and everything is something special that I’ll let everybody else be happy with.
“Last year wasn’t a success for me and I’m motivated to make sure that we get that other ring this year.”
To that end, Kelce, 35, said his offseason workouts this year have been different from his normal ones. He started earlier, shortly after the Super Bowl LIX loss to the Philadelphia Eagles and put more time into them.
He shed some of his 260 pounds, though he indicated that reports he dropped 25 pounds were false.
“Don’t believe all you read on the internet [but] I’m down some weight, yeah, from the end of the season last year,” Kelce said. “Each year’s different. You’ve got to rebuild it. This year I got some time to really focus on some form running and some things early on in the offseason that I just didn’t have time for last year. I’m certainly feeling good and I think it’s going to pay off.”
Kelce led the Chiefs with 97 catches last season, though his totals for yardage (823) and touchdowns (three) were the lowest of his 11 NFL seasons. He said he wouldn’t judge his 2025 season on personal statistics but simply on whether the Chiefs win the Super Bowl or not.
“It’s just kind of how I’m wired now,” Kelce said. “Earlier on in my career, I would set those goals for myself, [but now it’s] just go out there and try and make every play for my team.
“Be the best teammate, be the best leader I can be. Last year, I think I failed, especially in that last game, and being a leader and being the one that could step up and make plays. So I’m just setting the bar even higher for myself this year than I have in the past.”
Kelce is entering the final season of his contract with the Chiefs. He said he didn’t know whether the 2025 season would be his last but suggested if he did play in 2026, it would only be for the Chiefs.
“We’ll try and figure out something for next year,” Kelce said. “The Chiefs organization knows how much I love them. I can’t see myself ever playing anywhere else, so we’ll deal with that down the road when the time is right. But right now, I’m focused on winning the championship this year.”
