{"id":41718,"date":"2026-01-15T11:46:02","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T11:46:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41718"},"modified":"2026-01-15T11:47:27","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T11:47:27","slug":"chiefs-sign-new-tight-end-as-andy-reid-takes-first-steps-to-replace-travis-kelce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41718","title":{"rendered":"\ud83d\udd25 Chiefs Sign New Tight End \u2014 Is Andy Reid Finally Preparing for Life After Travis Kelce?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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<\/header>\n
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 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"Chiefs<\/picture><\/div>\n

The Kansas City Chiefs have signed a new tight end as Travis Kelce ponders his future.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Speculation has surrounded the NFL legend for months, with many expecting No. 87 to walk away for good.<\/p>\n

\"Travis<\/figure>\n

He recently dropped a new hint on his retirement plans and joked he is ‘jobless’ after the Chiefs’ 2025 season concluded.<\/p>\n

Kelce is also said to have an exciting new career lined up, post-football.<\/p>\n

Despite that, he is yet to officially clarify his future, and that puts Kansas City in a tough spot.<\/p>\n

With or without him, life will go on for the crumbling dynasty, which finished 6-11 this season and landed a top 10 draft pick after nearly a decade of NFL dominance.<\/p>\n

\n

Fans react to Andy Reid and Travis Kelce’s lastest sideline interaction as Chiefs coach calls Patrick Mahomes a ‘joker’<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Chiefs sign tight end with Travis Kelce decision to come<\/h2>\n

Head coach Andy Reid, it seems, has taken the first step to prepare for 2026 and beyond without his 36-year-old weapon.<\/p>\n

On Monday, the Chiefs re-signed practice squad tight end Tre Watson to a reserve\/future contract.<\/p>\n

The 23-year-old, out of Texas A&M, initially arrived in Kansas City as an undrafted free agent following the 2025 NFL draft.<\/p>\n

He was then assigned to the practice squad heading into the season, and did not see the field.<\/p>\n

Watson’s reserve\/future contract guarantees that he will have a role in training camp in 2026, and the agreement will become official at the start of the new NFL year on March 11.<\/p>\n

What depth do the Chiefs have at tight end?<\/h2>\n

In 2025, Kansas City was well stocked in the tight end position.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

\"Kansas<\/p>\n

\"Kansas<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Veteran and three-time Super Bowl champion Kelce sat top of the depth chart, with Noah Gray, Robert Tonyan and Jared Wiley behind him.<\/p>\n

Of those names, only Gray saw considerable action on the field in 2025. He featured in 16 games, catching 21 of 37 targets for 178 yards.<\/p>\n

Tonyan and Wiley had two receptions between them.<\/p>\n

Should Kelce choose to retire, it’s almost certain that Gray — a fifth-round pick in the 2021 draft — would be elevated to Kansas City’s No. 1 tight end.<\/p>\n

The 26-year-old was handed a contract extension in 2024, and when that deal was locked down, quarterback Patrick Mahomes spoke highly of him.<\/p>\n

“He’s just a smart player,” Mahomes said.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

\"Noah<\/p>\n

\"Kansas<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

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 <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

“Extremely smart player that does a lot of physical stuff that we need in this offense. He’s able to get himself open, he makes the catches whenever he’s asked to do it, but a guy who can just do it all.<\/p>\n

“You need those guys in order to win football games. He’s one of those guys that can come in for Travis in spots and I have full confidence that he can go out there and make plays happen as well.<\/p>\n

“He’s learned a ton behind Trav, and you can see him getting better and better each and every year. I was happy for him because he’s one of those guys that does it the right way and deserves the contract he got.”<\/p>\n

Should Kelce walk away in the coming months, Mahomes will be relying on Gray to fill a gaping hole on the offense in the years to come.<\/p>\n

Watson, perhaps, will also have a shot of making the field too.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Kansas City Chiefs have signed a new tight end as Travis Kelce ponders his future. Speculation has surrounded the NFL legend for months, with many expecting No. 87 to walk away for good. He rec\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":41719,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[39,2659,2669,1050,2652,2661,1965,1781,2670,2668,19,18,227,2666,314,1958,128,2657,17,2667,2658,36,2656,2654,2653,2664,2655,2665,2671,2663,2662,2660],"class_list":["post-41718","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-andy-reid","tag-andy-reid-on-travis-kelce","tag-chiefs-new-tight-end","tag-chiefs-news","tag-chiefs-nfl","tag-chiefs-practice-squad","tag-chiefs-roster","tag-chiefs-super-bowl","tag-chiefs-te","tag-chiefs-tight-end","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-news","tag-nfl-playoff-bracket","tag-nfl-playoffs","tag-noah-gray","tag-patrick-mahomes","tag-patrick-mahomes-travis-kelce","tag-super-bowl","tag-super-bowl-lx","tag-taylor-swift-chiefs","tag-travis-kelce","tag-travis-kelce-chiefs","tag-travis-kelce-decision","tag-travis-kelce-news","tag-travis-kelce-replacement","tag-travis-kelce-retirement","tag-travis-kelce-stats","tag-travis-kelce-update","tag-tre-watson-chiefs-contract","tag-tre-watson-nfl","tag-who-will-play-tight-end-for-chiefs-in-2026"],"yoast_head":"\n\ud83d\udd25 Chiefs Sign New Tight End \u2014 Is Andy Reid Finally Preparing for Life After Travis Kelce? - Breaking News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=41718\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\ud83d\udd25 Chiefs Sign New Tight End \u2014 Is Andy Reid Finally Preparing for Life After Travis Kelce? - Breaking News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Kansas City Chiefs have signed a new tight end as Travis Kelce ponders his future. 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