After Kelce Made a Splash, Will the WWE Return to the NFL Talent Pool?

After Kelce Made a Splash, Will the WWE Return to the NFL Talent Pool?

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WrestleMania 40, or WrestleMania XL, lived up to its billing in every regard in April 2024. Not only did the headline battle between Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns deliver and then some, but the whole event was packed with surprises and special guest appearances that helped to make it as XL as possible. For the upcoming 41st WrestleMania, even though it’s not such a momentous round number, the location invites more colossal collaborations.

This year will see the huge event make its way back to the Las Vegas area for the first time since 1993. This time, instead of being hosted at Caesars Palace, as WrestleMania IX was, it’ll be at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. The home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders has a maximum capacity of 71,835, with its booking perhaps being made possible by former Raiders president Dan Ventrelle being involved before he left in April 2024.

It’s an NFL stadium, plenty of NFL stars will be wanting to flock to Las Vegas for the April 19th-20th 2025 event, and last year’s NFL inductions proved incredibly popular at WrestleMania. Following on from the hit 2024 inclusions, we could see the WWE dipping back into the football pool of talent to bolster WrestleMania Vegas even further.

Getting the Eagles on the Square Circle of Philly’s WrestleMania

On April 6th-7th 2024 at Lincoln Financial Field, yet another NFL hotspot – which goes to show just how colossal WrestleMania has become – XL welcomed a couple of stars from the football team onto the mat. Those two stars were Eagles legends Jason Kelce – who played center for the team and had recently retired – and big WWE fan and offensive tackle Lane Johnson, who’s still an active NFL player.

It was a fitting celebration of the WWE’s biggest event returning to Philadelphia for the first time since WrestleMania XV in 1999, with both athletes clearly lapping up the experience and giving it their all. As a result of all the fanfare surrounding their involvement, and what with Kelce presently being retired, the WWE is interested in the retired offensive lineman joining the company’s ranks.

As is often the case when a big name is touted as a possible inclusion in the WWE, superstars are jumping in to encourage them to join. The same happened when Tyson Fury was dipping his toe in wrestling, and now Kelce’s being egged on by The Miz, who told TMZ Sports that he’d love to see the older Kelce brother return to the square circle in the future – as well as his brother, Travis.

Bring on the Football Stars

As the biggest sport in the US, the WWE will always be able to draw in even more fans by including some NFL stars either as guests, guest wrestlers, or by fully inducting them into their roster. We’ve seen WrestleMania go big on acquiring NFL stars even before Kelce, with Ken Norton Jr. jumping onto the ring for WrestleMania XI in 1995. It’s a tried and tested strategy with plenty of potential in 2025.

While not a Las Vegas Raiders player, George Kittle would be the obvious choice. The tight end for the San Francisco 49ers is a well-known fan of pro wrestling, having appeared on SmackDown Live, discussed Lucha Masks during game conferences, and even being lauded by The Rock on X. Plus, he looks set to become available soon after Week 18 of the NFL season, which concludes the regular season for the San Francisco 49ers on January 5.

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As of December 12, the NFC West odds have swung away from the 49ers in Betway’s NFL betting market. Despite making it to the 2023 season’s Super Bowl to lose to the Kansas City Chiefs 22-25, the team is out at +1800 to win the division in 2024, well back of the Seattle Seahawks at -135, the +160 Los Angeles Rams, and even the +900 Arizona Cardinals. Injuries have hit hard after four of the last five seasons saw them go to at least the NFC Championship.

In fact, after going to the Super Bowl and losing to the Chiefs 31-20 to end the 2019 season, the 49ers also went 6-10 to miss out on the playoffs. At 6-7, few expect them to get back, giving Kittle a long off-season and space to dip his toe into the WWE arena. A perhaps more controversial pick would then be the retired Rob Gronkowski. The popular TE wrestled on the WWE books back in 2020, but exercised his release clause to get back in the NFL for another year.

Other than Gronk and Kittle, the WWE could look to the man-of-the-moment and another tight end in Travis Kelce or even hotshot rookie TE of the Raiders, Brock Bowers. Either way, the WWE should be tapping into the NFL spring to add another influx of football stardom to WrestleMania 41 in 2025.