Jason Kelce announce NFL Retirement” Resignation and Departure From Philadelphia Eagles Today due t…..READ MORE

The six-time All-Pro Philadelphia Eagles center held a news conference Monday afternoon to announce his retirement, a move that has been expected since Philadelphia’s season ended in January.

Kelce, 36, wore a cutoff black Eagles T-shirt with a gold wedding band and gold watch visible on his left hand and wrist.

He leaves the NFL after 13 seasons, all with the Eagles, marked by dependability, availability, consistency and cerebral, exceptional play.

Kelce was selected to seven Pro Bowls in his career, including the most recent five, and his six first-team All-Pro nominations came over the final seven seasons of his career.

“I’ve been asked many times why did I choose football, what drew me to the game, and I’ve never had an answer that gets it right,” Kelce said Monday at his press conference, fighting back tears.

“The best way I can explain it is what draws you to your favorite song, your favorite book — it’s what it makes you feel.

The seriousness of it, the intensity of it, stepping on the field was the most alive and free I have ever felt.

After Philadelphia’s season ended with a 32-9 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round of the playoffs, Kelce was visibly emotional on the sidelines, and he declined to talk to the media afterward.

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According to multiple reports, Kelce had told teammates in the postgame locker room after the wild-card loss that it would be his last game as an NFL player.