Jason Kelce has decided to hang up his helmet for good.
Following a disappointing 32-9 Wild Card playoff game loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night, the Eagles center has decided to call time on his Hall of Fame-worthy career.
3Kelce fought back tears as he left an NFL field for the final timeCredit: Getty
The Super Bowl LII champion looked visibly emotional at the end of the game as he held back tears and briefly went over to his family.
According to reports, 36-year-old Kelce informed his Philly teammates of his decision to retire in the locker room straight after the defeat.
Jason is yet to speak publicly about his retirement but, in a candid scene from Kelce, a Prime Video documentary, the seven-time Pro Bowler provided an insight into why retirement wasn’t far from his mind.4
The Eagles star cited his overall health – and fears around Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disease linked to repeated head injuries common in pro footballers – and how that could impact his family in the future as a reason for walking away from the sport.
“There have been little things that are not big things yet but are going to turn into big things the longer I play,” he says in the doc.
“Not to dress like an elephant in the NFL room, but I am fearful about what the impacts of playing football are going to mean long-term.
“I have two girls and … some people end up getting CTE and some guys live long, healthy lives.
“I have no idea what’s going to happen with that because I’ve thought about this,” he says, thinking of the amount of physical impacts in the game and if “it might come back to bite me.”
3Jason and his wife Kylie have three young girls togetherCredit: Instagram@kykelce
3Jason is a big family man and is incredibly close to mum Donna (right) who frequently attends his gamesCredit: Instagram@kykelce
“Nobody’s guaranteed tomorrow. Nobody’s guaranteed years in advance,” he added. “We idolise living as long as possible and as healthy as possible. I don’t know that that’s necessarily the meaning of life.”
“If I get CTE and I can’t interact with my grand-kids, I would still say playing 12 years in the NFL and making my family super prosperous and being an influential member of at least the city of Philadelphia is a good trade-off.”
The superstar offensive lineman is universally loved around the league and he is widely regarded as one of the best to ever do it in his position.
He was selected in the sixth round of the 2011 NFL Draft due to the perception he was ‘undersized’ for a center.
An emotional Jason Kelce finds his family in the stands postgame 💚 pic.twitter.com/nIJxKDHpxA
— NFL (@NFL) January 16, 2024
But the six-time first-team All-Pro selection proved all the doubters wrong and will likely be a first ballot inductee in Canton, Ohio.
However, the bumps, hits and tackles have taken their toll, with Jason reportedly feeling mentally and physically fatigued in recent seasons.
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Kelce, who has flirted with retirement in the past, admitted that returning to practice every week was getting harder and harder to do.
“The Wednesdays are getting harder. Really, that’s the only thing,” he said.
He added: “You’re sore Monday, you’re off Tuesday, but Wednesday … I’m just having a hard time getting going again on Wednesdays. Getting the juice, you know?”
