The Kansas City Chiefs are suddenly staring at the real possibility of missing the postseason, and what once felt like an inevitable playoff run has become a desperate fight for survival. After a 31-28 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving, the team finds itself in crisis mode — and it is raising a massive question about tight end Travis Kelce: could this be his final NFL season?

Kelce has been transparent about weighing retirement, and with Kansas City clinging to postseason hopes, the narrative around his future is shifting fast.

“I’d like to make that decision before they’ve got to get draft picks and free agency opens to fill the roster appropriately,” Kelce, 36, who is in the final year of his current contract, said last week. “All that will be at the end of the season. I won’t be thinking about it until then.”

Yet the team he has helped lead to multiple Super Bowls is now facing a near-impossible task just to keep the year alive.

Kelce scored a touchdown early against Dallas and continues to operate as one of the most productive players at his position.

His five touchdowns and 674 yards in 12 games have re-established him as a top target in the Chiefs’ offense.

But individual success isn’t enough. Kansas City now enters Week 13 with no margin for error.

“If we are going to make the playoffs, we have got to win them all,” quarterback Patrick Mahomes told reporters after the loss. “You’ve got to win every game now and hope that’s enough. We’ve got to play a lot of good football teams.

“Our ceiling is playing in the Super Bowl,” Mahomes continued. “At the end of the day you’ve got to go out and do it on a week-in and week-out basis. We can beat anybody but we’ve shown we can lose to anybody.”

For Kelce, that means his final game could come on January 4 against the Raiders unless the team rights the ship immediately.

Kelce’s postseason achievements are in rare territory. His resume includes:

• 178 career playoff receptions
• 2,078 receiving yards
• 20 touchdowns in 25 postseason games

He holds the NFL record for playoff receptions and ranks second in postseason touchdowns and yards. No tight end in history has combined regular-season excellence with postseason dominance the way Kelce has. He’s been to the playoffs in 11 of his 12 seasons.

That’s why many analysts doubt this is his final chapter.

Chiefs reporter Pete Sweeney wrote on X, “I think we all came into this season thinking that this would for sure be Travis Kelce’s last season, but he’s been playing like he has year(s) left.”

But the schedule ahead could define everything. The Chiefs host the Houston Texans next Sunday, followed by home games against the Los Angeles Chargers and Denver Broncos. They face a road matchup against the Tennessee Titans and finish with the Raiders in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, injuries are piling up. Josh Simmons fractured and dislocated his wrist against Dallas. Jawaan Taylor exited with an elbow issue. Guard Trey Smith was already sidelined with an ankle problem. Kansas City is battered at the worst moment of the year.

Former teammate Chase Daniel isn’t convinced Kelce is nearing his final snap.

“Travis Kelce is not slowing down… makes me wonder if he’s going to play another year,” Daniel posted.

Still, if the Chiefs don’t run the table, the tight end’s future becomes the biggest storyline in the NFL postseason — even if Kansas City isn’t part of it.