Following a 13 year- long career with the Philadelphia Eagles, center Jason Kelce is retiring from football.
His retirement announcement was long expected since the end of the 2023 season, following his last game where an emotional Jason Kelce went over to his wife Kylie, mom Donna, and dad Ed, thanking them for all their love and support.
Despite people expecting this announcement, it didn’t make it any less emotional.
On March 4, 2024, Kelce held a press conference at the Eagles Training Facility where he announced his retirement from the NFL. Kelce was visibly emotional throughout his speech where he thanked his family, teammates, and the city of Philadelphia. The press conference was attended by his wife, parents and his younger brother, Kansas City Chiefs star tight end, Travis Kelce, all of whom were also in tears.
Jason ends his career with 7 solo tackles, 1 assist, and 7 fumble recoveries. He’s played a total of 205 games, making 81.7 million dollars, the most made by any center in NFL history. He is also a Super Bowl champ, having lead the Eagles to their first franchise Super Bowl victory in 2018, is a 6- time first team All Pro and a 7 time Pro Bowl player. He is one of 5 centers to earn 6 All Pro nods; the other 5 are all in the NFL Hall of Fame.
Following the press conference, several players, teams, coaches, commenters and the National Football League itself took to social media to congratulate Jason on a legendary career, wishing him the best in the future.
Many have already said Jason is guaranteed a spot in the NFL Hall of Fame. Jason is eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2029. If he is voted into the Hall of Fame that year, he would be the first center since 1987 (the year he was born), to do so on his first try.
Off the field, Jason is a highly respected and valued member of the Philly community, volunteering and creating several charity organizations throughout Philadelphia.
Both Jason and his wife Kylie Kelce are active parts of the Eagles Autism Foundation. Since they first got married in 2018, Kylie has taken on a leading role in the Eagles Autism Foundation. Kylie has been very open about her strong connection to the foundation. Kylie’s childhood neighbor, Tim, who she has described as someone who is, “more like a brother than a neighbor” has autism. As Kylie grew up and realized how important it was to understand autism since Tim has made such an impact on her life and continues to be a part of her family to this day. She has been very committed to the cause ever since and Jason has been by her side for all her charitable efforts, even going so far as chugging a 30 ounce beer in 5.7 seconds to raise money for the foundation– a very impressive achievement, indeed.
Jason is also the founder of the (Be)Philly Foundation. Occurring the foundation’s website, their, “mission is to empower our students with the tools, confidence, and courage they need to build a brighter future for themselves and all of us.” He has also created his own clothing line called Underdog Apparel, which donates their proceeds going towards youth programs that the (Be)Philly foundation supports.
via: jason.kelce on instagram
The Philadelphia Eagles even have a Christmas album. Jason and his fellow teammates made “A Philly Christmas Special” in 2022 to raise money for local charities. In 2023 they released their second Christmas album this time called “A Philly Special Christmas Special,” featuring a duet by both Kelce Brothers.
Jason has been opening up about his other retirement plans on the New Heights Podcast he does with his brother Travis. The two got very emotional when discussing Jason’s retirement in the March 6th episode which aired just 2 days after Jason officially announced his retirement.
New Heights has been a massive success for both Kelce brothers and has reached a crowd far beyond football (aka Swifties). The show has seen very special guests such as Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Eagles Quaterback Jalen Hurts, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, and of course their family. Their parents, Kylie and even Jason’s daughters have all made several appearances on the show.
The Kelce Family has also appeared on the big screen several times. Jason even has his own documentary titled “Kelce” which followed him and his family during the 2023 Super Bowl, or as it is often referred to as “The Kelce Bowl” and the birth of his 3rd daughter Bennet. Jason and Kylie have 3 daughters Wyatt, Elliotte, and Bennett. The family has been seen at several charities events and even went to DisneyWorld during the 2024 Pro Bowl.
