NEW ORLEANS — Breaking any of Jerry Rice's receiving records puts you in a pretty special category.
Kansas City Chiefs star Travis Kelce was one of the all-time greats even without the Super Bowl record for most career catches, but his stature grew a bit in Super Bowl LIX. Kelce needed three catches to pass Rice's record of 33 catches in Super Bowls, and he set the record by two on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Kelce had the benefit of one more game — Rice played in four Super Bowls and Sunday was Kelce's fifth — but that doesn't matter. Kelce is a big reason the Chiefs keep making it back to the Super Bowl so he can keep collecting those catches.
Rice still holds the career Super Bowl receiving yardage record at 589 and that might stand for a while. Before Sunday, nobody else was within 225 yards of that record. But one of his most important records was broken.
Kelce has been fantastic in Super Bowls through his career, which will lead to the Pro Football Hall of Fame someday. When he retires is up in the air. There was a report on NFL Media this week that he is undecided about his future. That shouldn't be too big of a surprise that he is at least considering retirement at the end of his age-35 season. Very few tight ends last that long in the NFL, much less continue to produce as Kelce has. Kelce said in the week leading up to the Super Bowl that he believes he has a lot of good football left, but he also has plenty of opportunities outside of the game, including a highly successful podcast with his brother Jason, who retired from the NFL after last season.
Kelce has Super Bowl rings, plenty of accolades and a level of fame that very few non-quarterbacks ever reach. After this fifth Super Bowl, he has a key record that might take a long time to break. We'll see if he comes back next season for a chance to add to that record.
