The NFL offseason is in full swing following Super Bowl LIX, where the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22.
Now, teams across the league are shifting their focus to NFL free agency, which begins on March 12, and the NFL Draft, which starts on April 24 in Green Bay.
As for the Chiefs, they’re facing some uncertainty at the tight end position. Travis Kelce has contemplated retirement and is set to take some time to make a decision on whether he wants to call an end to his legendary career or return to football for another season.
“I’m gonna take some time to figure it out,” Kelce said on the “New Heights” podcast “And I think I owe it to my teammates that if I do come back that it’s going to be a wholehearted decision, and I’m not half-assing it, and I’m fully here for them.”
There’s no doubt that if the 11-year Chief decides to return, he sees himself staying in red and gold, finishing out the final year of his contract rather than playing elsewhere. However, ESPN’s Aaron Schatz has a different perspective.
In a story published Friday outlining “daring potential offseason moves” for every NFL team, Schatz suggested that Kansas City should consider cutting Kelce instead “as an easy way for the Chiefs to gain cap space for 2025.”
“This would be a very unpopular move, but Kelce’s contract is set up as an easy way for the Chiefs to gain cap space for 2025,” Schatz said. “According to Roster Management System, cutting Kelce would cost the Chiefs only $2.5 million in dead money while saving them over $17 million on the salary cap. That’s important with the Chiefs currently having negative effective cap space (i.e. the cap space that they would have after signing at least 51 players and a projected rookie class).
Schatz backed up his argument with data, showing that Kelce wasn’t the same player this past season compared to what he’s been throughout his career.
“And while Kelce still had some important catches in the postseason, his regular-season performance collapsed in 2024,” Schatz added. “Kelce ranked 38th out of 49 qualifying tight ends in receiving DVOA, and he ranked dead last among tight ends in the ESPN receiver tracking metrics.”
No matter what Kelce decides, or if the Chiefs cut him as Schatz suggests, he’ll be remembered as the greatest tight end in NFL history.
Over his career, he’s recorded 12,151 yards and 77 touchdowns. He is also a three-time Super Bowl champion, a seven-time All-Pro, and a ten-time Pro Bowler.
