On a poor night for a Chiefs offense working with third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun and playing for nothing but pride, Kelce delivered, catching five passes for a team-leading 36 yards and making every effort to throw blocks for his ball-carrying teammates. While the Chiefs lost to the AFC West-leading Broncos in a contest that came down to the final minute of the game, the momentum remained high in the same arena that had hosted six of the last seven AFC Championship games.
Cornerstones like Kelce have had a lot to do with that.
“You only get a handful of those (moments) where you get to stand there and appreciate 60, 70 thousand Chiefs fans cheering you on,” Kelce said of his pregame introduction on Christmas night. “I always embrace this moment.”
Kelce earned another Pro Bowl trip in 2025, an honor bestowed upon him during a season in which he caught 73 passes for 839 yards and five touchdowns — mirroring numbers he’s posted in each of his last two campaigns — and also a nod to his place among the greats of his generation. Statistically, he’s made a measurable difference in a disappointing and often frustrating season for the defending AFC champions, but it’s clear that at 36, he’s not the elite player he once was.
Most people are familiar with this. Kelce has not shied away from it either, but will make his decision about his future “when the time comes.”
Thursday night ended in disappointment, but in a different way. Kelce is one of the few pillars of the Chiefs empire still standing at this point in the campaign and is doing his best to finish strong, stepping in when the Chiefs graduate has nothing else to play for.
“A lot of emotions,” Kelce said. “You’ve got everybody in the world watching you. You get to go out with the young guys on prime-time television. Young guys get a taste of what this NFL life is like.”
Periods of dominance often end without warning, but the rulers’ transition into this unfamiliar world of irrelevance was not without its implications. They had struggled in close contests – previously their comfort zone – and lost their eighth one-goal game on Thursday night. Earlier this week, ownership announced that the club plans to leave Missouri for Kansas and a new stadium in 2031.
Soon, Kelce may decide if he, too, is done with his Chiefs journey. One game remains, however, for Kelce to break 13,000 career yards and pass Terrell Owens for the eighth most receptions in NFL history (he needs just two).
One of those remaining pillars is hoping that Week 17 wasn’t their last together — at Arrowhead or at all.
“We’ve been through so much together,” Chiefs defensive end Chris Jones said, also via the Associated Press. “Just one more (season). Just one more.”