The Kansas City Chiefs drafted tight end Travis Kelce with the No. 63 overall pick of the 2013 NFL Draft.
That makes the Chiefs’ 2024 training camp Kelce’s 12th. Even after all that he has accomplished in his career – including three Super Bowl wins, nine Pro Bowls, and four All-Pro selections – the 34-year-old Kelce touted his belief in the value of training camps.
Travis Kelce Gets Honest About 12th Chiefs Training Camp
Chiefs’ Travis Kelce: Training Camp ‘Where It All Starts
“It’s where it all starts,” Kelce told reporters on July 27. “You can say it starts in the offseason and, yeah, you want to you want to get that foundation set in the offseason of the leadership and the mentality and things like that. But at the end of the day, this is where you really find ou what the team is made of. How you sharpen the iron, how you guys practice, your practice habits, the attention to detail
“Nobody does it better than [Head Coach Andy] Reid and Spags [Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo], man.”
Kelce is coming off another Pro Bowl campaign, recording 984 yards and five touchdowns on 93 receptions.
However, the yards were his fewest since 2015, his second season in the league. His touchdowns were a low since 2019. He still had more than 90 receptions for the sixth consecutive season.
That is the most by a tight end – consecutive or not – in NFL history, per Stathead.
Travis Kelce with the score & the pose 🕺#ChiefsKingdom @KCTV5 pic.twitter.com/n6Q8o0AIO0
— Marleah Campbell (@MarleahKCTV5) July 23, 2024
Travis Kelce ‘Putting My Nose Down & Grinding’
Kelce voiced frustration with his play at times during the 2023 season. But coming off another campaign, he said he has not done anything dramatically different in preparation for the 2024 season.
“Over every single season, you find ways to get better – what works for you, what doesn’t,” Kelce said. “You just want to amp it up every single year so that you keep finding ways to kind of climb that staircase of success. And, yeah, I would say I’m doing some things different. But nothing really in the grand scheme of things. Just putting my nose down and grinding.”
Pro Football Reference ranks Kelce with the third-highest Hall of Fame probability score ever.
Only former Chief Tony Gonzalez and ex-New England Patriot and Tampa Bay Buccaneer Rob Gronkowski bested his score. Gonzalez is already in the Hall, elected in his first year of eligibility in 2018 and inducted in 2019, while Gronkowski will be eligible for the first time in 2027.
Kelce missed two games last season, which would have added to his final numbers. Still, Kelce is within range for a couple of career landmarks.
Travis Kelce Can Climb TE Ranks in 2024
Kelce needs 513 yards to pass former Los Angeles Charger Antonio Gates for No. 3 on the career receiving yards list for tight ends. He needs 48 receptions to pass Gates in that category and one touchdown to take sole possession of fifth place there (he is currently tied with former Dallas Cowboys star Jason Witten).
He has a way to go to climb higher than that. There is still a 1,700-plus-yard gap between Kelce and Witten on the yardage list and a 3,799-yard chasm before Kelce reaches Gonzalez.
Kelce needs 15 touchdowns to overtake former New Orleans Saint Jimmy Graham for fourth place and 42 to reach Gates at the top of the list. Gonzalez and Graham both played until they were 37 years old. Gates and Witten played until they were 38 years old. Kelce, who turns 35 years old in October, still has time to add to his already Hall-of-Fame-worthy numbers
Main Photo: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
