On Friday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler continued his collection of rankings based mostly on enter from NFL executives, coaches and scouts. This time, the league’s high 10 tight ends had been listed.
Fowler laid it out.
The George Kittle vs. Travis Kelce battle raged on for a half-decade in superb style.
And now it’s over.
The highest tier of this yr’s tight ends record options a number of contemporary names — and a brand new tight finish king.
Kittle and Kelce could have gold jackets ready for them after retirement. For now, they’ve tight ends inside their respective divisions who’re jockeying for place.
Sure… this record begins with the Las Vegas Raiders’ Brock Bowers, adopted by Kittle, the Detroit Lions’ Sam LaPorta and the Arizona Cardinals’ Trey McBride. After which we lastly see the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs’ famous person.
5. Travis Kelce, Kansas Metropolis Chiefs
Highest rating: 4Lowest rating: unrankedAge: 35Last yr’s rating: 1
The back-to-back tight finish king fell properly in need of first place after indicators of decline surfaced in 2024.
Most of that may be chalked as much as age. Kelce turns 36 in October and has performed almost 200 video games over 12 years, together with playoffs.
However a number of evaluators famous that Kelce performed heavier final yr, one thing he’s aiming to repair. He has slimmed down this offseason in preparation for what could possibly be his ultimate season. Whereas a workforce supply believes any weight points didn’t have an effect on his play dramatically, lack of explosive performs was an issue. His 8.5 yards per catch had been a profession low by a large margin.
“For certain [he showed] indicators of bodily decline, however you continue to have to fret about him as a result of he’s such a wise participant with an amazing reference to the QB,” a veteran professional personnel evaluator stated. “Simply doesn’t get open like he used to.”
Kelce remains to be harmful within the purple zone, the place he turned 26 targets into 19 catches for 106 yards and three scores. He nonetheless led the Chiefs in targets (133) final season.
Whereas Kelce will stay a focus, the Chiefs anticipate to have full well being at broad receiver, and tight ends Noah Grey and Jared Wiley may develop in stature.
“He’s nonetheless superior,” an NFC govt stated of Kelce. “It won’t look as unique as he used to, however you continue to search for and he’s obtained 9 for 70.”
My take
Over many seasons, I’ve just about exhausted my outrage about Kittle over Kelce. Since he’s 4 years youthful than the world’s most well-known tight finish, it was inevitable that Kittle would as soon as once more rise above his Kansas Metropolis rival. Now it’s occurred — and I’m largely OK with it.
It’s true: Kelce seemed heavier and slower in 2024. And in Tremendous Bowl LIX — a state of affairs wherein we might sometimes anticipate him to be nice — he was disappointing. Even Kelce admits that.
However he additionally seems to be re-energizing himself. He’s not solely misplaced weight, however appears decided to return to kind in 2025.
And it may occur.
No… he’s not going to magically turn out to be the 27-year-old who started an unimaginable streak of seven consecutive 1,000-yard seasons in 2016. However we may see him return to the participant he was in 2023, when he simply missed his eighth 1,000-yard season by intentionally sitting out the ultimate regular-season matchup so he could possibly be at 100% within the postseason. That paid off. Over these 4 video games, he led all receivers with 32 receptions for 355 yards — and scored three touchdowns, too.
Sure… Kelce is 2 years older than he was for that run — and Father Time stays undefeated. However at the very least a part of the explanation he didn’t get open as typically in 2024 was the absence of broad receivers Rahsee Rice and Hollywood Brown. With out them, it was a lot simpler for defenses to focus their consideration on him.
So earlier than we write him off for 2025, let’s see what he can do when Kansas Metropolis fields a stable corps of wideouts. I’m sure that Kelce would really like nothing higher than shocking everybody with one other nice season.
Ballot
Will Travis Kelce return to kind in 2025?
