What is the story behind Travis, Jason Kelce's NFL jerseys?

Travis Kelce and Jason Kelce made a lot of headlines in the year 2023, as the brothers participated in Super Bowl rivalries and made bestselling albums.

The brother duo made headlines early in 2023 when their NFL teams went head-to-head in February's Super Bowl, making them the first brothers in NFL history to face off in the league's championship game according to SportingNews.

So what does their jersey number mean to them? Let’s find out.

Travis Kelce

Like his famous girlfriend Taylor Swift, who is known for including hints and Easter eggs into the lyrics of her songs, Travis Kelce's jersey number has a very special meaning behind it, Menshealth reported.

Kelce in an interview said that his jersey number 87 is a tribute to his brother, Jason Kelce, "If there is a Kelce legacy, two brothers making it to the NFL, it all started in 1987 because this big guy was born in 1987,"

The brothers, with a two-year age gap, played together at Cleveland Heights and Cincinnati. 

However, it all nearly went down in 2010 when Travis was suspended for testing positive for marijuana. 

During that time, Jason took in his younger brother and later helped him get reinstated with the Bearcats after asking the coaching staff to give him a second chance.

Travis said, "I’m forever in debt to this guy for putting his name, our name, putting his honor on the line to get me another chance. When I say I owe it all to him, I do."

Jason kelce

Jason, who has jersey number 62,  said in an interview, "The significance of No 62 is that when I made it to the National Football League (NFL) this is the number that was given to me and I am honored to wear it. Growing up I kind of liked the No. 13 for the sports that I played,

"But I had a football coach in middle school that once said to me, 'The player makes the number, not the other way around,' 

"Since then, I've taken the number that was handed to me. I have an identity with 62 and I'm going to have that forever."