Chiefs’ $11.5 million Travis Kelce conundrum, deadline given and his stance

As Travis Kelce mulls over his future in the NFL, the Kansas City Chiefs are under stress to determine where to pivot, considering the team has a deadline that could potential hamper free agency plans

Travis Kelce’s decline was apparent in the 2024 NFL season and in Super Bowl LIX as the Kansas City Chiefs were blown out by the Philadelphia Eagles, ending a bid for a three-peat.

In the 2024 season, Kelce recorded career lows in receiving yards (823) and touchdowns (3), and his final two playoff games showed that the 35-year-old could be past his prime. Against the Eagles, Kelce had four receptions for only 39 yards, with Philadelphia’s defense shutting down one of Patrick Mahomes’ main targets.

With how poorly he played in the most important game of the year, questions arose on whether Kelce still had what it took to play at the highest level. As the Chiefs await Kelce’s decision regarding his future, there are more pressing matters to attend to aside from whether he will return or not.

Kelce’s $11.5M bonus

Despite how Kelce played throughout the season and the Super Bowl, the declining star will still get a hefty bonus, provided he does not retire or gets cut by Kansas City. Should Kelce remain on the roster past March 14, he will be given an $11.5 million bonus.

That goes on top of the $19.8 million he is slated to receive from the team in the 2025 season. If the franchise does decide to cut Kelce or if he retires, his cap hit would be set at $2.5 million instead, giving the Chiefs more room to work with in free agency.

It appeared as if Travis Kelce’s age caught up with him in the Kansas City Chiefs’ blowout loss ( 
Image:
Kara Durrette/Getty Images)

Chiefs deadline

For Kansas City, they will be pressed for time as they await what Kelce will have decided he will do for the upcoming season. On March 14, the 35-year-old is set to receive the aforementioned $11.5 million roster bonus.

However, if the franchise decides to cut Kelce before March 14, they will not have to pay the bonus. Additionally, cutting Kelce will save $17.25 million, which will help the Chiefs with more cap space as they attempt to figure out how to build another championship-contending team, with or without Kelce.

While Kelce takes time to figure out how he wants to present his decision regarding his future, the star’s older brother, Jason, believes that the Chiefs star already has decided what he wants to do. “I think he probably, in his heart, already knows what he wants to do. That’s the reality of it,” the elder Kelce brother said during an appearance on ‘The Steam Room’ podcast.

“I’m sure we will talk about it. We’ve already talked about it a little bit, and I’m sure he’s going to go through a process of figuring that out. We’re very similar people, but we also have different ways of thinking about things. And sometimes I can way over-analyze situations, and my brother has this way of being like, ‘Hey man, you want to play or you don’t want to play’.

“He’ll say something like that where it’s just like, don’t worry about all of these minor things. And nine times out of ten, he’s right about all of it.”