The Reports of Travis Kelce's Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

Sure, Travis Kelce isn't the exact same player he was years ago. He's still one of the league's scariest weapons.

Oct 27, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) celebrates with wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins (8) after scoring a touchdown against the Las Vegas Raiders during the second quarter at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images / Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

If you got swept up in the weeks of breathless conversation about Travis Kelce's precipitous fall-off — motivated by either on-field or off-field reasons — I don't know what to tell you. "You need to calm down," perhaps? "What did you expect?" "Why did you find the silliest take-machines in NFL media and take their word as gospel?"

Look, it happens. A 35-year-old tight end even seeing the field is a rarity, but last year, a 34-year-old tight end led the Chiefs in receptions and receiving yards, so you can't be completely caught off-guard. Everyone should have taken Kelce's slow start to the 2024 season for what it was: a consequence of several obvious factors coming together to raise the degree of difficulty on Kelce and the entire Chiefs offense. Of course he's not the exact player he was five years ago. He doesn't need to be.

One week after a four-catch, 17-yard performance against the San Francisco 49ers, Kelce led the Chiefs with 10 catches for 90 yards and a touchdown in the Chiefs' 27-20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. At times, particularly on Kelce's touchdown, the presence of DeAndre Hopkins gave the Raiders defense another established threat to consider, even in a limited debut workload. Rookie Xavier Worthy, in an imperfect game, demanded some defensive attention. Noah Gray and Justin Watson each hauled in passes for decent chunks of yardage to continue to present Patrick Mahomes with a variety of options. Mahomes had another more characteristic game as the offense operated more smoothly, with a few still-too-frequent exceptions.

The Chiefs' offense isn't perfect (or healthy, or complete). Kelce hasn't been perfect either. But maybe, with a touchdown now on Kelce's box score, we can stop entertaining the idea that he's suddenly no longer a legitimate threat on the field. That was always outrageous.

Ultimately, Kelce's struggles through the first half of the season had been the Chiefs' struggles. Without their top two wide receivers (in addition to JuJu Smith-Schuster in a presumably more short-term absence), even a mid-30s Kelce was clearly KC's top playmaking threat. After Kelce carried the skill position group in 2023 while Rashee Rice got up to speed in his rookie season, Kelce was put in a similar spot out of necessity early this year.

Through training camp and the first few weeks of the season, it was clear that Kelce's role was intended to shift away from being the Atlas of the offense into a position where he wouldn't perpetually be the sole focus of opposing defenses. As Hopkins acclimates to the playbook and while Worthy continues growing into NFL form, Kelce may still be able to share the workload with peers by the time the playoffs arrive. Until then, his production will ebb and flow as the Chiefs and their opponents fluctuate game-by-game and matchup-by-matchup.

While it's true that 35-year-old Kelce shouldn't be asked carry the team on his back at all times, that's not because he's washed, out of shape or unfocused. It's because he now appears to be something resembling human. Yes — he is, by NFL standards, old. That fact only makes it all the more remarkable that there still isn't a scarier sight on third down for opposing defenses than the old man who's closer to his first-ballot Hall of Fame induction than he is to his rookie season.

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