Jim Kelly is still standing. And he’s still talking.
The Hall of Fame quarterback who led the Buffalo Bills to four straight Super Bowls gave an honest update on his health this week, and it’s not all smooth sailing. Kelly suffered a stroke earlier this year, and according to what he told ESPN, there’s been a recent setback that’s slowed things down a bit.
“I had a little setback about a month and a half ago,” Kelly said. “But right now, I feel good. Eyesight’s not great. My hearing still sucks, but that’s part of life.”
Kelly is 66 now. He beat cancer back in 2019, which was already a major win for a guy who’s been through more than most. This stroke situation is just another fight in a long line of them. And if you know anything about how Kelly played quarterback in those brutal Buffalo winters, you know the man doesn’t quit easy.
What the Stroke Changed
The stroke hit earlier this year, and Kelly has been working through it since. He didn’t get into every detail of what the setback was specifically, but the way he described things — vision issues, hearing problems — it sounds like the recovery is a grind. He’s not pretending otherwise.
But here’s the thing about Kelly. He’s got something waiting for him that’s keeping the motor running.
Highmark Stadium opens this fall. The Bills are moving out of the old place and into a brand new building that’s supposed to be one of the loudest in the league. And Kelly can’t wait to hear it for himself.
“It’s going to be special, not only for the players, but imagine the fans in there, how crazy and wild and loud they’re going to get,” Kelly said. “And that’s what I’m looking forward to. I want to see how loud this stadium can get. And from what I’ve been told, it’s going to be unbelievable, but I don’t expect anything less.”
Still the Same Competitor
It’s easy to look at Kelly and just see the highlights — the no-huddle offense, the frozen AFC Championship games, the heartbreaking Super Bowl losses. But people around Buffalo know him as the guy who kept getting back up. That hasn’t changed just because he’s off the field now.
His mentality is the same one that made him the toughest quarterback in the league during his era. He’s treating this stroke recovery the way he treated a third-and-long in a blizzard. You take the hit, you adjust, and you keep moving forward.
Kelly isn’t doing any victory laps yet. He’s honest about where things stand. But when you hear him talk about that new stadium and the noise those fans are going to make, you get the feeling he’s planning to be there for it. And for a city that’s watched him fight through cancer and now a stroke, that’s about as good as any update gets.
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