The Kansas City Chiefs may already be making plans to replace Travis Kelce with Noah Gray as the 35-year-old tight end continues to struggle throughout the 2024/25 NFL season, including against the Carolina Panthers.
After a tough contest against the Buffalo Bills in Week 11, the clash against the 3-8 Panthers offered a great chance for Kelce to bounce back on November 24 but he could only make 62 yards from six receptions and zero touchdowns.
Meanwhile his 25-year-old potential successor made 66 yards from four receptions from four targets for two touchdowns, suggesting he has the potency that the three-time Super Bowl winning senior is currently lacking.
Whilst fans may be sad to see Kelce becoming increasingly isolated in the Chiefs‘ offense as Patrick Mahomes looks for targets with younger legs, it’s no surprise that he is struggling in what is his 11th season as a pro.
Gray is a fourth-year and seems to becoming more and more involved after scoring two touchdowns against the Bills on November 17 and thus, bringing his season total up to 27 receptions from 30 targets for 315 yards and four touchdowns, already eclipsing the other three years.
And he is well-liked by the Chiefs‘ offense and the offense coordinator, Matt Nagy, who praised his reliability and said he is one of the most underappreciated players within the team.
“He’s Mr. Consistent,” Nagy told reporters. [and] I think it’s very valuable.
“And he’s probably one of the more underrated and under-appreciated guys from outside of this building when you look at what he does.”
Is he actually going to replace Kelce?
Mahomes praised him for shadowing Kelce and learning from the veteran how to find the spaces in the rival defenses to make himself open for the quarterback to find, as well as his focused demeanor and commitment to the job.
Those qualities will be why he penned a three-year-deal worth $18 million dollars with Kansas, ensuring he will be with the organization until 2027, so he could very well be Kelce’s successor.
However, it is also worth noting that Mahomes already said earlier in the season Kelce is finding it hard to make any space for himself due to defenses doubling, or even tripling, up on him due to the Chiefs’ injuries across their offense.
Injuries to Hollywood Brown, Rashee Rice and Isiah Pacheco mean the 35-year-old is one of the only veterans in that offense alongside Kareem Hunt and DeAndre Hopkins, so Gray could be used to draw defenders away from Kelce to get him back into the game.
