When Travis Kelce entered the 2026 season, one question that followed him everywhere was “how much longer does he plan to play?” At 36, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has already accomplished more than most players at his position could imagine. Two games into the 2026 season, Kelce is offering a familiar response on the field. He is still producing, still breaking records and still giving Andy Reid reasons to believe his veteran tight end has more left in the tank.
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Kelce delivered one of his best performances of the season during the Chiefs’ thrilling 33-30 victory over the Indianapolis Colts. He finished with nine receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown, leading Kansas City in receiving while helping the team move to 2-0. And Reid had the perfect response when asked about another record Kelce had broken.
“I see Kelce broke another record. He hangs around long enough, he’ll break all of ‘em,” Matt Foster shared Coach Reid’s response on X.
Kelce’s latest milestone came in the first half against the Colts, when he surpassed Hall of Famer Marshall Faulk to become the NFL’s all-time leader in receiving yards after the catch.
Faulk had finished his career with 6,230 yards after the catch. Kelce entered the game just behind him but moved past the mark before adding to his total throughout the night.
His 13-yard touchdown reception gave Kansas City an early 10-7 lead and added another highlight to an already productive evening. By the end of the game, Kelce had reached 6,288 career yards after the catch, according to The Kansas City Star, moving ahead of several notable names on the all-time list.
The achievement also continued a record-setting start to the season. Just one week earlier, during Kansas City’s season-opening win over the Denver Broncos, Kelce passed Jason Witten for the second-most receiving yards by a tight end in NFL history. He reached the milestone on a 59-yard catch-and-run, his longest reception since 2021, taking his career total to 13,073 yards.
“Kelce, he dusted it off, right? Three for 71 yards. Pretty good for an old man that people look cross-eyed at,” Reid said.
Kelce’s retirement topic even came up before the season began. When Athlon Sports’ Craig Ellenport asked Reid who would retire first if he had to bet a cheeseburger on himself or Kelce, the coach avoided making a direct prediction.
“Oh, my goodness,” Reid said. “How about if I just stay in the middle? How about if we both go out together? How’s that?”
Reid and Kelce have been together in Kansas City for more than a decade, winning three Super Bowls and building one of the most successful coach-player partnerships in the NFL. For now, neither appears to be in a rush to bring that chapter to an end.
Travis Kelce still has plenty of records within reach
Kelce’s performance against the Colts was not simply a one-game resurgence. His early-season production has placed him among the NFL’s leading players in yards after the catch.
According to Pro Football Focus, Kelce entered the week with 128 receiving yards after the catch, leading the league ahead of Atlanta Falcons running back Bijan Robinson, who had 120, and Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who had 116.
The numbers are another reminder of what makes Kelce so difficult to replace. He remains one of the league’s most effective tight ends. The record against the Broncos also carried personal significance for Kelce. Speaking on New Heights, he reflected on the tight ends he admired when he entered the league, including Tony Gonzalez, Jason Witten and Rob Gronkowski.
Kelce admitted that he once wondered whether he could reach the same level as those players. Now, finding himself mentioned alongside them is something he considers an honor. He also joked that catching Gonzalez at the top of the tight end receiving list would require him to play for “another five years.”
Kelce still has several other statistical milestones attached to his name. He ranks third among tight ends in career receptions, with 1,083, and fifth in touchdown receptions, with 82. He also holds the NFL record for most postseason receptions by any player, with 178.
His 38 career games with at least 100 receiving yards are another tight end record.
However, Kelce has made it clear that his motivation is not simply about adding numbers to his résumé. During the offseason, he explained that he still believes he can perform at a high level.
“I still think I can go out and play at a high level, and I want to go out there and prove to myself that I can play at a better level than I did last year,” Kelce said. “I think that’s probably the biggest thing for me is making sure that I’m accountable for the guys in this room every single play that I’m out there.”
That mindset could be just as important as the records themselves. He wants to remain productive, contribute to the Chiefs and show that he can still influence games at the highest level.
Two weeks into the season, he has already added multiple milestones to his career and produced a 100-yard performance with a touchdown. Reid’s latest comments suggest that the Chiefs are more than happy to keep giving him opportunities to add to that list. If Kelce continues to perform at this level, the retirement conversation may have to wait a little longer.