Eagles center Jason Kelce: ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen for me’ next season

BALTIMORE — Moments after the Kansas City Chiefs received their fourth AFC championship trophy in five years on stage at M&T Bank Stadium, tight end Travis Kelce sauntered across the field with his arm around Taylor Swift and found his older brother Jason.

As Travis clutched his brother in an embrace, he slapped him on the back, his hand landing on the unfamiliar fabric of a red and gold Hawaiian shirt. Jason, the 36-year-old Eagles center, left the shirt unbuttoned and wore a red T-shirt layered underneath emblazoned with Travis’ nickname “Big Yeti” in gold writing.

“You keep your shirt on this time or what?” Travis exclaimed.

“I mean, I did for right now,” Jason responded. “We’ll see how it goes.”

While processing the end to a lackluster Eagles season that included a wild-card playoff exit and mulling the future of his playing career, Jason has been along for the Chiefs’ postseason run in support of Travis. On Sunday, the latest stop was Baltimore, where the Chiefs pulled off a 17-10 victory over the Ravens to punch their ticket to the Super Bowl.

The week before, Jason shed his shirt in freezing-cold temperatures at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, N.Y., as he cheered for Travis in the Chiefs’ 27-24 divisional-round defeat of the Buffalo Bills. Throughout his 13 seasons as an Eagle, which have overlapped with Travis’ 11-year career with the Chiefs, Jason has learned how to compartmentalize his individual disappointments while he celebrates his brother’s successes.

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“As a Philadelphia Eagle, incredibly disappointing season, especially at the end of it,” Jason told The Inquirer. “And I really, really look forward to next year. I look forward to trying to prove people wrong, especially with some of the recent hires and Nick Sirianni. And there’s a lot of things up in the air for the Philadelphia Eagles. But I think that, as a player, you always look forward to go into battle with your guys.

“And then as a brother, I mean, listen, this is an easy team to root for. This is a team that has not been ... had their roses, and been the easiest road for them. They fought, they’ve overcome adversity, they’ve stayed together through all the nonsense. When everybody doubted them, when everybody said they don’t have the guys to get it done, they still find themselves going to the biggest game in the world for football.”

The brother in Jason donned head-to-toe Chiefs colors and tracked down some of Travis’ teammates to extend his congratulations. From a suite above the southeast end zone, Jason celebrated as he watched Travis set a record for most receptions in NFL playoff history with 156 total, breaking Jerry Rice’s previous high of 151. Travis helped pave the way to a win with 11 receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown.

At the same time, the player in Jason was taken by the emotion of the moment on the field. He has experienced his share of division titles, most recently last season when the Eagles defeated the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC championship game. For Jason, those moments shared with teammates on the cusp of the Super Bowl don’t get old.

“You watch this and the emotion is so high,” Kelce said. “It feels so great being here on this field right now for your teammates and for the guys that are going to get an opportunity to compete for a Super Bowl. These are emotions. And these are situations that you don’t get unless you continue to go.

“And I don’t know what’s going to happen for me. But I do know, I still want to be involved in the organization and still want to be a part of it, regardless of what the decision is. Because I don’t want to ever feel like I’m on the outside looking in on these achievements and these accolades and these opportunities that largely represent entire cities and fan bases and organizations. It’s too good a feeling to pass up.”

For the last 13 seasons, Jason has been an integral part of the Eagles’ success, which includes their Super Bowl LII victory over the New England Patriots to cap the 2017 season. He considered retirement in each of the last two offseasons, ultimately deciding to return to the team on one-year deals each time.

The seven-time Pro Bowl, six-time All-Pro center showed this season that he’s still capable of playing at a high level against the best defenses in the league. Pro Football Focus credited him with conceding just one sack, one hit, and 13 hurries, which ranks him in the top 10 in the league in each category among centers who had a minimum of 394 pass-blocking snaps.

Jason started all 17 games for the Eagles, setting a new franchise record with 156 consecutive regular-season starts, all the while continuing to serve as a mentor to younger players such as first-time starting right guard Cam Jurgens.

He isn’t in a hurry to make his next move official. For now, Jason is enjoying the offseason and his journey alongside his brother, which will culminate in Las Vegas on Feb 11.

“I’m looking forward to watching him,” Jason said. “I’m looking forward to heading out to Vegas and cheering my brother on. Hopefully him and Pat [Mahomes] and Andy [Reid] and those guys can get the third one.

“And if it isn’t in the cards, hopefully blackjack is in the cards for me.”