Could the Kansas City Chiefs adjust Travis Kelce’s contract in order to push back his retirement deadline?
Travis Kelce’s retirement decision could take a while, based on a new update.
The Athletic’s Nate Taylor and Cale Clinton originally reported a likely retirement deadline of March 14, one day before Kelce’s $11.5 million roster bonus goes into effect on March 15. That could still be the Kansas City Chiefs’ target date for a decision, but there’s another world where KC extends Kelce’s window into June.
According to ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano on February 19, “it’s entirely possible Kelce and the Chiefs could work something out, push back the roster bonus deadline, [and] adjust the contract to make him a post-June 1 cut if he retires.”
That would give Kelce another few months to make his decision, with the next soft deadline potentially being mandatory minicamp in June.
“Kelce’s contract is built very conveniently at this point,” Graziano noted within his update. “It allows him and the team to go in any number of different directions.”
The key — for the Chiefs — would be coming to an agreement with Kelce where he reworks his contract to push back that $11.5 million roster bonus. If that bonus goes into effect and Kelce retires, he would not only be paid not to play, but his 2025 dead cap number would also “rise from around $2.55 million to around $14 million” — per Graziano.
That’s why the roster bonus deadline is currently so important. Altering that deadline gives both parties ample time to find a proper resolution.
“One of the greatest players in franchise history isn’t likely to be shoved out the door over $11.5 million,” Graziano reminded within his blurb. Concluding later that Kelce’s contract “probably wouldn’t require any more adjustments” once the roster bonus date is pushed back.
