Jason Kelce has officially retired from the NFL after 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles, news he announced in a emotional press conference on Monday in Philly.
After spending so many years as the starting Eagles center, Kelce will now explore life outside of the NFL as one of the game’s most recognizable former players.
We’re expecting Kelce to stay in the realm of sports in one way or another, so we’ve broken down five opportunities that the newly retired NFL veteran could pursue now that his playing days are over.
One of them is pretty obvious (continuing to co-host his podcast New Heights), while one of them might be a surprise if you’re not familiar with what Kelce does in his spare time.
Credit: New Heights
It certainly feels like Kelce’s most likely post-NFL career opportunity will be one he’s already been working on, his podcast New Heights with his brother and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
We’re betting that the elder Kelce will pour plenty of time and resources into building up that podcast, and it wouldn’t be a shock if a big media company swooped in and purchased the rights to the show, perhaps a media company that Kelce might go to work for as a broadcaster…
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Kelce is going to be one of the hottest media free agents in a long time, as he’s skyrocketed into being one of the NFL’s most recognizable players and has proven he’s got the bona fides to be a stellar on-camera talent.
We’re guessing that ESPN, NBC, Fox Sports, CBS and Amazon will all try to make plays for Kelce to join in their broadcasting teams for the 2024 NFL season and beyond. Whether he’d travel on weekends to games or just work in the studio as an analyst, he’s going to be highly sought-after in media.
Our guess is NBC swoops in and gives him the flexibility to work out of its Philadelphia studio so he doesn’t have to travel quite as much.
If you watched the 2023 Amazon documentary Kelce, you’ll know that the NFL veteran has a keen interest in farming. The former Eagles center owns his own herd of cows in Missouri, and it wouldn’t surprise us in the slightest if he tries to expand into that business with more time on his hands.
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We do wonder if someone in Hollywood is going to greenlight a Travis brothers action comedy sometime soon, as the elder Kelce could pivot like some athletes to into the acting space. While he might not want to be the next John Cena or Nnamdi Asomugha, we could easily see him appear in a movie or two sometime in the next couple of years. He’s got the charisma for it.
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We’re not sure if Kelce will want to hop into coaching right away. However, in an age where former star NFL players are getting more and more opportunities to lead college programs, we could easily see him being a splash hire somewhere.
He’d be an outstanding recruiter, and if his former college Cincinnati ever had an opening, we’d bet on them making a call. Maybe an NFL team (like the Eagles) would add him to their offensive staff?
It’s probably not the option he’d choose right away (or ever) since he’s just now getting away from the demanding schedule of being an NFL athlete, but it’s always going to a possibility because of how smart and magnetic he’s proven himself to be. File this option away for later.