Eagles’ Jason Kelce Announces Retirement After 13 Seasons
Photo Credit: Perry Knotts, Getty Images
One of the greatest centers in the history of the NFL officially hung up his cleats on Monday. Jason Kelce, a Super Bowl champion, seven-time Pro Bowler, and six time first-team All-Pro, spent all 13 of his seasons in the NFL with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Kelce was a sixth-round draft pick coming out of college at Cincinnati, where he transitioned from being a walk-on running back to a scholarship center during his four years with the Bearcats. During his college career, he was named second-team All-Big East twice and was an All-America honorable mention in his senior season.
In the NFL, Kelce was instantly named a starter in 2011, and remained the starter for Philadelphia all the way through the end of the 2023 season. In October of the 2023 season, he set the Eagles franchise record for most consecutive starts with 145, passing Jon Runyan. Kelce’s streak ended at 156 starts, and in total, he started 205 games in his career in the regular season and postseason.
Kelce’s longevity was a rarity in terms of offensive lineman. Being in his mid 30s and still pulling and blocking the way he did in his waning years made him look like he was 25 years old. He constantly put defenders on their backside, leading the way for the dominant Eagles rushing attack, which finished in the top ten in rushing yards in each of the previous four seasons, with a first-place finish in 2021.
Kelce was also the engine behind Philadelphia’s “Brotherly Shove,” a revamped version of the quarterback sneak where the line gets low as the skill players push the quarterback from behind. Kelce’s ability to always be the lower man and push the pile was the reason why the play was so successful. In the past two seasons, the play had over a 90% success rate.
Kelce wasn’t solely known for who he was on the field. He was one of the most charismatic players in the league off the field, and always found a way to be a talking point on the other six days of the week. He started a podcast with his brother and NFL star, Travis, called New Heights with Jason and Travis Kelce at the start of the 2022 season, which was an instant hit and is still one of the most popular sports podcasts out. He has also appeared in music features and TV shows, is featured in an Amazon Prime documentary, and even spent a game in the broadcast booth in the 2023 season.
Most importantly, Kelce is a father of three and a husband, and now has more time to dedicate to his family. He is thought of as a guaranteed Hall-of-Famer and will also have his jersey retired by Philadelphia (there’s no formal announcement on this, but it’s a no-brainer). One of the greatest athletes in Philadelphia sports history will forever be immortalized in NFL history.
