The two best tight ends of history (for me) are former New England Patriot Robgronkowski and Kansas City’s Traviskells. The former had a different style than the latter, but both were absolutely devastating. In much of Kelse’s career that began in 2013, he was not stopped. That’s not an exaggeration. There are probably 10-15 offensive players in the league’s modern history. That’s mostly no matter how well the defense played, regardless of the strategy that the player still controlled. Think Eric Dickerson or Chris Carter. Kelse was at that level.
Kelse is certainly a high intelligence player, but it was the extraordinary matchup issue he presented that he allowed him to eat. He has a generous football swivel hip, stands 6-5 and is 250 pounds solid. Those hips (the last time I used that word) give him defensive back fluidity. Kelse was fast and strong, but fluidity is key to athletic ability. The safety was too great, he was turning too much for the linebacker, and was too shifty, even if the corners covered him, measuring the angle and route with Karl Sagan’s mathematical accuracy.
All this led to Kelse building a 10 Pro Bowl and an all-decade team in the 2010s. Also, Kelse was an exemplary person off the field.
But this season we haven’t seen all of that 12-year Team Kelse.
We saw something different. For a part of this year, he was good. He had a catch of 97. But for most of the season, he wasn’t. His route running angle and aggression had sometimes disappeared. Travis Kelce looked average and sometimes below average. This is an incredible statement.
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On his recent “New Heights” podcast, he spent some time talking to him to decide if he was going to retire. Hall of Famer Bill Palsel and Mav Levy are said to have said they have already retired if they are thinking about resignation.
Obviously, and undoubtedly, it’s time for Kelse to do just that. This does not require him to retire. It’s not my place. This is based solely on what can be seen with the naked eye. All of these amazing physical abilities fall off the cliff.
Can he get them back? It’s always possible. But he is not visible near Kelce, as we have come to know.
Now you may have seen a viral clip of Kelce from Super Bowl 59. It is a snapshot, and the snapshot is not necessarily fair. these are.
For us as Kelce Truster, I have a lot of respect for him, and I saw some of this in Kelce last season. Certainly he had moments, but he seemed to be slowing down more and more.
Time brings us all. No matter how skilled, clever, or wonderful. Kelse, of course, knows this, and his understanding of the wear and tear of time was a thru-line of what he said on the podcast. That part is definitely worth reading.
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“I know that everyone wants to know if I’m playing next year. “I’m kicking every can I do down the road. I’m making a crazy decision. I’m not doing it, but for now the biggest thing is being there for my teammates and there for my coaches. I’m going to get into this.
“I’ve been lucky in the last five or six years, but I’ve played more football than anyone else. It’s about people in that building and these AFC Championships, these Super Bowls, meaning it makes sense. The fact is, that means. I’m playing three extra games than anyone else in the entire league.
“It’s a lot of wear on your body. It’s all the challenges you set for yourself, focusing on your craft, focusing on the tasks in front of you. The process can be tough. It can make you better and it can drive you crazy now. You are looking at yourself or the success you once had Towards nine of your career, plus that, you’re not there at the biggest moments of your team, you, guys, they’re all very difficult. …It’s just a harsh reality.”
Another thing that made Kelse so scary was his fiery nature. At Super Bowl 59 he was half asleep.
Kelse will be inducted into the Hall of Fame. He becomes special even among a group of special players.
I wish I could fast-forward to that moment.