Travis Kelce has established himself as the best tight end in football over the last half-decade.
George Kittle, Kelce’s biggest competitor for the league’s top tight end, certainly thinks he is one of the best, but comes away very confused as to why he is not paid that way. When it comes to Kelce’s production on the field, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has the most receiving yards of any player in the NFL over the past six years.
Speaking with Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, Kittle said the fact that Kelce doesn’t get paid like a wide receiver “just boggles my mind”:
“I mean, Travis Kelce, six seasons in a row, 1,000 yards. I’m pretty sure he has the most receiving yards over any wide receiver, skill position in the last six years. He gets paid half of what a wide receiver makes, which just boggles my mind. I mean, to me, Travis Kelce, he’s been doing it for so long and at such a high level. And he doesn’t have an off game. I think he has one bad game a year, and it’s just because he’s getting triple-teamed.”
Kittle added: “Every NFL team … that’s won a Super Bowl or been to the Super Bowl for like the last five years has had an All-Pro tight end a part of the team. I feel a tight end’s not just like a cog in the wheel; it’s an important position that can really add to your offense or diminish it.”
Kelce is a 7-time Pro Bowler and three-time first-team All-Pro and has been one of the Chiefs’ top targets since 2014 and has been their leader in receiving yards four times. His numbers are likely to increase in 2022 after the team traded Tyreek Hill to the Dolphins.
Kelce signed a four-year, $57 million extension in August 2020. For comparison, Hill just signed a four-year, $120 million deal with the Dolphins.
According to Over The Cap, Kittle is the highest-paid tight end at $15 million per year.
“He’s a player I look at like, when he gets the ball in his hands, he’s a monster,” Kittle said. “When you have six 1,000 yards in a row, you’re a hell of a football player.”
