Jason Kelce Announced His Retirement After 13 Years With the Eagles

Although even more attention has been put on his brother in recent months, Jason Kelce has also gotten his fair share of attention this year thanks in large part to the podcast the two pro football players host together. But Jason, who has played center for the Philadelphia Eagles for more than a decade, is finally hanging up his cleats for good.

Jason, who won a Super Bowl with the team in 2017, has spent his entire NFL career with the team. And in March 2024, he announced in a tearful speech that he was retiring.

In an emotional speech before a crowd that included his parents, his wife Kylie, and his brother Travis, Jason said, "I've been asked many times why did I choose football — what drew me to the game — and I never have an answer that gets it right."

"The best way I could explain it is what draws you to your favorite song ... your favorite book. It's what it makes you feel. The seriousness of it. The intensity of it," he added.

"Stepping on the field was the most alive and free I had ever felt," he explained. "There was a visceral feeling with football, unlike any sport. The hairs on my arms would stand up. I could hit somebody, run around like a crazed lunatic and then get told, 'Good job.' I love football."

He also noted that it had "always been a goal of mine to play my whole career in one city. I couldn't have dreamt a better one if I tried."

Following the Eagles' wild-card loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Jan. 15, 2024, Jason reportedly told his team in the locker room that he would be retiring from the NFL, and he appeared to be visibly emotional following the loss.

But on the Jan 17, 2024 episode of the New Heights podcast he co-hosts with Travis, Jason said that he hadn't made any sort of final decision about whether he'll be back or not.

“I didn’t announce what I was doing on purpose, despite, I guess, what’s been leaked to the media,” Jason explained.

“… I just don’t think you’re in a position after a game like that to really make that decision, I just don’t, there’s too much emotion in the moment, there’s too much going down in the moment to really fully grasp that decision," he continued.

Jason was also quick to add that he had no desire to draw things out or make his ultimate decision feel too dramatic, but he wanted to take the time to carefully consider the decision.

“When it’s time to officially announce what’s happening in the future, it’ll be done in a way that’s definitive and pays respect to a lot of people and individuals that have meant a lot to me and what has led to the career I’ve had, and I don’t think it would be respectful or even accurate to be able to do that right after a game like that,” he explained.

Jason may not have definitively retired in the Eagles locker room after that game, but it sounded like he gave his team a speech in a way that signified the end of his tenure with the team.

“Frustated, I guess, at everything that’s happening, but in the future there will be something said, I guess, but I did address the team and pretty much said the same thing I just said to you, which is I got belief in every single one of you guys, cherish the moments you have in this league, I think it’s kind of the way it went down," he said.

Jason took a moment on the podcast to steady himself, and was clearly emotional about the Eagles loss. “I think there was a lot of emotion in the room, for sure,” he said. “I don’t know what the future holds for anybody in that building right now, we’re about to get into, I guess, what happens down the stretch but we have exit interviews tomorrow.”