Travis Kelce

Kelce was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round (63rd pick overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft.[12] The Chiefs had hired Andy Reid as their new head coach during the off-season. Reid was familiar with Kelce after he had drafted and coached his brother, Jason Kelce, during his time as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.[13][14] On June 6, 2013, the Chiefs signed him to a four-year, $3.12 million rookie contract that also included a signing bonus of $703,304.[15]

On October 12, Kelce was placed on injured reserve after having surgery on his knee. He only played in one game during the season and did not record any statistics.[16]

Kelce in 2014.

During Week 3 against the Miami Dolphins, Kelce recorded his first NFL touchdown on a 20-yard reception from quarterback Alex Smith.[17] On November 30, he was fined $11,025 for "unsportsmanlike conduct" during a 29–16 loss to the Denver Broncos. Kelce made an inappropriate hand gesture and simulated a jerking motion at the Broncos linebacker Von Miller. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid later called this "immature".[18] In the next game against the Arizona Cardinals, Kelce had seven receptions for 110 yards for his first NFL game with over 100 receiving yards.[19] In the regular-season finale against the San Diego Chargers, he had an offensive fumble recovery for a touchdown.[20] Kelce was the Chiefs leading receiver during the 2014 season, totaling 862 yards off 67 receptions.[21][22]

Kelce began the 2015 season with his first NFL multiple touchdown game, with six receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns against the Houston Texans.[23] It was his only 100+ yard game, but he had at least one reception in all 16 games,[24] and was ranked a top-five tight end by ESPN.[25] He started all 16 regular season games and recorded 72 catches for 875 yards and five touchdowns, earning his way to his first Pro Bowl.[26][27] The Chiefs finished the regular season with an 11–5 record and made the playoffs.[28] In his first NFL playoff game, Kelce had eight receptions for 128 yards in a 30–0 Wild Card Round victory over the Texans.[29] In the Divisional Round against the New England Patriots, Kelce had six receptions for 23 yards as the Chiefs lost 27–20.[30]

On January 29, 2016, Kelce signed a five-year, $46 million contract extension.[31] He was ranked 91st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016.[32]

During Week 8 against the Indianapolis Colts, Kelce had seven receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown.[33] In the next game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he was ejected after receiving two "unsportsmanlike conduct" penalties after arguing with two referees over not having a pass interference penalty called.[34] The second resulted from him sarcastically throwing his towel at an official in a flagging motion due to being upset about the first penalty. He was later fined $24,309 for his outburst.[35] During Week 13 against the Atlanta Falcons, he had eight receptions for 140 yards.[36] In the next game, Kelce recorded 101 receiving yards against the Oakland Raiders, his fourth consecutive game topping 100.[37] He joined Jimmy Graham and former Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez as the only NFL tight ends ever to do so.[38] In a Christmas Day win over the Denver Broncos, Kelce had career bests of 11 receptions for 160 yards and a career long 80-yard touchdown on a screen pass.[24] He finished the season with career highs in yards (1,125) and receptions (85).[39] His 1,125 receiving yards led the league among tight ends and his 85 receptions were second among tight ends behind Dennis Pitta of the Baltimore Ravens. Kelce's 634 yards after the catch also led all NFL tight ends.[40] He was named as a starter in his second career Pro Bowl, held on December 20, 2016.[41] He was also named First-team All-Pro.[42] He was ranked 26th by his fellow players, and second among tight ends, on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.[43]

The Chiefs finished atop the AFC West with a 12–4 record and earned a first-round bye in the playoffs.[44] In the Divisional Round against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Kelce had five receptions for 77 yards in the 18–16 loss.[45]

During Week 2 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce had eight receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown in the 27–20 victory.[46] After just one reception for one yard in Week 3, Kelce recorded seven receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown in Week 4 followed by eight for 98 in Week 5.[24] During Week 8, Kelce had seven receptions for 133 yards to pass Zach Ertz as the NFL's leading tight end in both categories,[47] along with a touchdown. During Week 13 against the New York Jets, Kelce opened the game with spectacular fashion, scoring two receiving touchdowns on 90 receiving yards in the first 2 minutes and 46 seconds of regulation. He finished the game with 94 receiving yards on four receptions in the 38–31 loss.[48] On December 19, 2017, Kelce was named to his third straight Pro Bowl.[49] Kelce finished the season with a career-high eight receiving touchdowns.[50] He finished second among tight ends with 1,038 receiving yards, only trailing Gronkowski's 1,084 receiving yards.[51] He was ranked 24th by his peers on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2018.[52]

The 10–6 Chiefs[53] entered the Wild Card Round of the playoffs against the Tennessee Titans, where Kelce finished with four receptions for 66 yards and a touchdown in the 21–22 defeat.[54] He was not able to finish the game as he suffered a concussion in the first half on a hit to his helmet.[55]

In the 2018 season, Kelce benefited from the rise of new quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who had an All-Pro season.[56] After being held to a lone reception for six yards in the season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers, he rebounded with seven receptions for 106 yards and two touchdowns in a Week 2 road victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers.[57] In two of the next three games, he was able to reach 100 receiving yards against the San Francisco 49ers and the Jacksonville Jaguars.[58][59] He added 99 yards and two touchdowns in a Week 9 win over the Cleveland Browns, and went into the Week 12 bye with 10 receptions for 127 yards and a touchdown in an offensively-spectacular 54–51 loss to the Los Angeles Rams. In the Week 13 win over the Oakland Raiders, Kelce had career-bests of 12 receptions and 168 yards, including two short touchdowns in the first half.[60] At this point, he was well on his way to an NFL record, but his production tapered off; over the final four weeks, Kelce averaged six receptions for 63.5 yards and had only one touchdown reception.[24] In Week 17, Kelce indeed broke the NFL record for most receiving yards by a tight end in a single season, but 49ers tight end George Kittle passed him to claim the record less than an hour later.[61] Kelce ended the regular season at 10th in the NFL in receptions with 103 and receiving yards with 1,336, and sixth in receiving touchdowns with 10.[62] He was named to the 2018 Pro Bowl and was named first-team All-Pro.[63]

The Chiefs finished atop the AFC West with a 12–4 record and earned a first-round bye.[64] In the Divisional Round against the Indianapolis Colts, he had seven receptions for 108 yards in the 31–13 victory.[65] In the AFC Championship against the New England Patriots, he had three receptions for 23 yards and a receiving touchdown in the 37–31 overtime loss.[66]

During Week 2 against the Oakland Raiders, Kelce caught seven passes for 107 yards and a touchdown of the season as the Chiefs won by a score of 28–10.[67] Despite injuries to quarterback Patrick Mahomes and just two touchdowns, at the midpoint of the season Kelce lead all tight ends and Chiefs players in receiving yards with 604.[68][69] During Week 11 against the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football in Mexico, Kelce caught seven passes for 92 yards and a touchdown in the 24–17 win.[70] During Week 14 against the New England Patriots, Kelce caught seven passes for 66 yards and rushed the ball once for a one-yard touchdown during the 23–16 road victory.[71] In the next game against the Denver Broncos, Kelce finished with 11 catches for 142 receiving yards as the Chiefs won 23–3.[72] In the next game against the Chicago Bears on Sunday Night Football, he caught eight passes for 74 yards and a touchdown in the 26–3 win. During the game, he became the fastest tight end in NFL history to record 500 career receptions.[73]

Kelce finished the 2019 season with 97 receptions for 1,229 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns to go along with his one rushing touchdown.[74] Kelce became the first tight end in NFL history to record four consecutive seasons with at least 1,000 receiving yards.[75]

In the Divisional Round of the playoffs against the Houston Texans, the Chiefs began the game with a 24–0 deficit. The Chiefs would then go on a 51–7 run, including 41 unanswered points, to win 51–31. After a drop on third down on the Chiefs first drive that would have been a first down if it had of been caught, Kelce caught 10 passes for 134 yards and three touchdowns (all in the second quarter) as he helped lead the Chiefs to their second consecutive conference championship game.[76] In the AFC Championship Game against the Tennessee Titans, Kelce caught three passes for 30 yards during the 35–24 win.[77] In Super Bowl LIV against the San Francisco 49ers, Kelce caught six passes for 43 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown and had one carry for two rushing yards during the 31–20 win.[78]