Last season, Travis Kelce pushed all doubts aside and asserted that he is the NFL’s best tight end. The Kansas City Chiefs star receiver was consistent all year as Patrick Mahomes’ top option. With the Chiefs struggling to find a true wide receiver #1, Kelce assumed the role despite being a larger and more powerful tight end.
Kansas City did not sign a big-time receiver in free agency, so Kelce should fit that mold again in 2023. He was tremendous, scoring 16 touchdowns throughout the regular season and postseason. He helped the Chiefs win this past year’s Super Bowl and should help keep the team a powerhouse in 2023. Is Kelce due to have yet another year as fantasy football’s top tight end?
Travis Kelce 2023 Fantasy Football Outlook
Recap of Kelce’s Historic 2022 Season
As the top option for Kansas City, Kelce caught 110 passes for 1,338 yards and 12 touchdowns in the 2022 regular season. For all receivers (WRs + TEs combined), he finished third in catches, eighth in yards, and second in touchdowns. For being a tight end, those statistics are crazy and show that he is versatile as both a big tight end and a fantastic receiver. He had six 100+ yard games and caught three or more touchdowns in two games. He finished over 100 PPR fantasy points better than the next tight end, which is a crazy gap. In fact, his lowest-scoring game all year was still 9.6 points.
Stat Prediction for Travis Kelce’s 2023 Season
As long as Kelce stays healthy and Patrick Mahomes doesn’t magically grow eyes for another receiver, he’ll retain his same success in 2023. In fact, with the loss of JuJu Smith-Schuster in free agency, Kelce could actually see more targets and receptions with one less star receiver in the mix. It’s likely that Kelce will again hit 100 receptions and could very well amass 120-130 this year. His yardage should stay around the same, between about 1,200-1,400 total yards. In terms of touchdowns, I think he may have a slight drop off in 2023, scoring just nine-to-ten times instead of the 12 from 2022. Even with a small drop-off, he should average between 16 and 20 points per game.
Fantasy Information (Rankings, ADP, etc…) for Kelce
Last season, Kelce tallied over 330 total fantasy points for an average of about 19.6 points per game. In terms of skill players, that put him as the eighth best overall behind just three running backs and four wide receivers. As far as rankings go in 2023, Kelce actually looks to be in better standing, as he averages being just the sixth overall pick in fantasy drafts. He could very well be worth a top-five pick but time will tell if he can have even more success in 2023. He should be taken in the first round of most leagues of standard size between the sixth and tenth overall picks. If for some reason he is still around in the second round of your draft, please grab him; he will not disappoint! He is well worth a high pick and functions as a top receiver nearly every single week.
Main Image: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
