Everyone talked about last year possibly being his last year. He even admitted he was thinking about it.
I said, Nope. He was definitely playing again.
Now this year, everyone is saying this might be his last year. Again. And again, I think he's definitely going to keep playing. I think it's quite possible he plays another 3 years.
The arguments for him retiring are:
He's got a lot of opportunities after he retires in acting and entertainment
He's (now) married to Taylor Swift
He's getting old
He's talked about possibly retiring, so that means he's about to
His brother retired already, so that is making him think about it more
Honestly, the only one that is even a reason for him to retire is the first, and maybe the last on the list. None of the others are decent reasons.
The arguments AGAINST him retiring are:
He has said many times he would keep playing "until the wheels fall off, baby"
He dated, fell in love, and got engaged to Taylor Swift while she was on a world tour and he was going to games. This is what they already know, and they have the money to see each other at any time anyway.
She fell in love with him, in part, because he was at the apex of a different industry. Women need to admire their husbands. That's why it's so hard for an extremely successful woman to find someone...if he's lesser than her, she'll feel like he's a golddigger. If he retires, he is no longer a prime, famous football player, he moves into her realm of entertainment.
She fell in love with him while he was playing games. She loves coming to the games, she clearly loves the atmosphere. If he retires, they are starting a new marriage without that element that played such a huge part of them falling in love.
He is hyper-competitive, maybe the only player I've seen that's a match for Mahomes. Kelce will NOT like not having NFL competition. He will HATE seeing the team play without him. Gronk, in contrast, couldn't match Brady's zeal, and retired while he could still play so he could party.
With Mahomes, EVERY season will end on one of two things: a heartbreaking loss, or a Ring. Each of these is a reason to continue. If it's a heartbreaking loss, the motivation is "I don't want to go out like this. I want to go out a winner." If it's another Ring, it's historic, and the motivation is "We have a great team, we can get another one."
He also cares about his place in history. He cares more about wins than stats, but he also cares about stats. One of the meanings of "until the wheels fall off, baby" is he wants to contribute meaningful snaps. If he gets 80 catches for 700 yards for 3 seasons, he likely passes Tony Gonzalez for most receptions and yards for a TE in NFL history. He's not going to catch him or Gates in TD receptions, but receptions and yards matter. It would make him the undisputed GOAT TE, and that does matter to him.
I think he saw his brother miss out on the Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl rematch. Had his brother just stuck it out a few more years, he would have had another Ring, and a revenge Ring against his little brother. Travis saw his older brother pissed in the Super Bowl loss, and he would want his brother to have that. So he has a living example of at least some regret. Once you retire you don't go back. You can always retire later.
His brother also retired because of his family, and because OL does tend to get beat up more. Travis doesn't have kids, and the way he plays TE, he really isn't risking not being able to walk.
Bottom line: Travis is hyper-competitive. The only players I've ever seen more competitive are Mahomes and Brady. He's only going to retire if there's a bad injury, if he declines to the point he can't put up at least 60 catches, 600 yards a season, or after he passes Gonzalez for the reception and yardage leader.