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By Robert Read
Life & Trends Reporter
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Life after football may soon be approaching for Jason Kelce.
The Philadelphia Eagles center received a preview of what that will look like—plus a warning of sorts—from a few familiar faces on Wednesday's latest episode of his New Heights podcast.
The older Kelce brother, 36, was joined by former Eagles teammates Chris Long and Beau Allen, who have both since hung up their NFL cleats. Toward the end of their conversation, which included reminiscing over winning Super Bowl LII together, Kelce wanted to talk about retirement. Not his, though. That decision is still looming. But in the meantime, the seven-time Pro Bowler sought some insight into what walking off the gridiron for good will be like.
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And his guests' explanations included an assist from a '90s movie.
"It's a huge existential crisis," said Long, a former No. 2 overall pick who played 11 seasons in the league. "Whether you think you're ready or not, your life changes. And yeah, you've been given a routine. You feel like the guy in Shawshank who is at the grocery store."
"Institutionalized," Allen wittily chimed in.
"And the grocery store sucks," Long continued, again referring to The Shawshank Redemption. "I'm not doing the Brooks [an elderly inmate in the film] thing, because I left the grocery store and continued on my way.... But you miss the hard stuff. You need the hard stuff, you need to be challenged. And [expletive] life is not as hard.
"And I think that's where guys struggle. You've got to get out and challenge yourself every once in a while. That's the thing I miss. The guys...the challenge every day. It's hard to find that s**t. Good luck," Long said.
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Tears clouded Kelce's eyes as he walked toward Raymond James Stadium's visiting team's locker room on January 15. Philly's season had just ended with a 32-9 Wild Card loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which may serve as the six-time All Pro's final NFL game after 13 years in the league. The center declined to speak postgame about the lingering retirement question, instead strolling to the exit in his signature flip-flops.
ESPN reported shortly afterward that Kelce informed the Eagles that he was stepping away from the game. Tributes poured in on social media. The former sixth-round pick later clarified on New Heights that nothing has been made official. That's still the case.
And while Kelce takes time to ponder that decision, Allen and Long wanted to prepare him.
"It is different, man," said Allen, who appeared in 90 NFL games between 2014 and 2019. "It's a little boring, Kelce. You don't have the intensity of football. That's something that's been a little bit of an adjustment. It's such a physically intense, competitive sport, and you always feel like you have to get ready for camp, you have to get ready for OTAs, you have to get ready for practice the next day, the game this week, things like that. You don't necessarily have that."
In his post-football life, Allen said, he is trying to live in a way he couldn't as a player, which includes catching up on travel and time spent with his friends and family. And then there's the weight aspect. The defensive tackle said he weighed 335 pounds up until a couple of years ago, but he is now down to 278.
"Wow," Kelce said.
"I'm sure whenever you decide to retire, Kelce, you lose that weight. You have so much more energy, man," Allen added. "And it's nice to not feel so [expletive] fat and sweaty and slobby all the time."
"But then you get old," Long, 38, joked. "Which hasn't happened to you yet."
Long and Allen both mentioned the locker room camaraderie as a highlight of their football careers that can't really be replicated. Though, like Kelce, they still talk plenty of pigskin. Long hosts the Green Light Podcast, while Allen co-hosts one called Fax and the King.
Kelce, recently named one of People's Sexiest Men Alive, said that no matter what his football future is, he looks forward to continuing New Heights with his brother, Travis Kelce. And a broadcasting gig could be in the works, according to multiple reports.
At this point, Eagles offensive tackle Jordan Mailata doesn't expect Kelce to return, telling NBC Sports in reference to some recent viral videos of the center that "there's no shot. You're telling me if he's going shirts off in the games, gambling in the casinos, he's coming back? No way."
All that will be finalized soon enough. And this ongoing discussion will eventually become a moot point. For now, however, Kelce has no limit on the retirement advice at his disposal.
The Cincinnati football product recently heard from Shaquille O'Neal, who said if he is going to retire, accept it and spend time with his family. And on Kelce's appearance on Long's podcast a couple of weeks back, the former defensive end passed along advice from his old coach Jeff Fisher—not to retire in a "J" month. January is too fresh after the season. Retiring in June or July may just be running away from training camp.
But now, Kelce is in the sweet spot. And a decision is coming soon.
"It is exciting to think about possibilities—it is exciting to be able to lose weight, feel good and not have to physically fight for my life every day," Kelce said on Long's show. "I think it is also daunting. It is anxiety, and at the end of the day, it is the unknown."
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