Travis Kelce’s recent comments are stirring the pot in the NFL, and it’s not hard to see why. The Chiefs’ star tight end dropped a bombshell, casually revealing that anywhere from 50-80% of NFL players use cannabis. He didn’t stop there, either—he spilled the beans on how players game the system to pass drug tests. “If you just stop in the middle of July, you’re fine,” Kelce said, explaining how players can time their usage to avoid detection, even as close as a week before testing, thanks to sweating it out in the summer heat. That kind of candor is rare in a league where players usually keep things close to the chest, and it’s bound to raise some eyebrows among his peers.
Kelce’s openness might not sit well with everyone in the locker room. By pulling back the curtain on a practice many players quietly rely on, he’s potentially putting a target on their backs. The NFL could take notice and tighten up its testing protocols, making life trickier for those who’ve been skating by. It’s the kind of thing that could make Kelce a bit of a pariah in some circles, even if he’s just speaking his truth. But this isn’t new territory for him—Kelce’s been in the hot seat before. Back in 2010, he missed his entire college season at the University of Cincinnati after failing a drug test for marijuana. That misstep became a red flag for NFL teams, and it cost him in the 2013 draft, where he slid to the third round, picked 63rd overall by the Chiefs. It’s a moment that could’ve derailed his career, but instead, it set him on a path to greatness.
Reflecting on that draft slide on his New Heights podcast with his brother Jason, Kelce didn’t shy away from the past. Jason, drafted in the sixth round himself, pointed out how Travis’ marijuana suspension and a few injuries were the only real knocks against him. “You were a great kid,” Jason said, laughing off how teams treated the weed issue like a “death sentence” when, in reality, it’s something a huge chunk of the league was doing even back then. That suspension forced Kelce to switch positions to tight end, a move that turned out to be a game-changer. Now, he’s not just a player—he’s one of the best to ever line up at the position, rewriting record books and redefining what a tight end can do. Kelce’s story is a reminder that sometimes, a stumble can lead to a sprint, and his latest comments show he’s still not afraid to shake things up.
