NFL: Travis Kelce has gone from elite to future Hall of Famer

The Kansas City Chiefs drafted tight end Travis Kelce out of the Univeristy of Cincinnati. They selected Kelce with their 63rd overall pick in the third-round of the 2013 NFL draft. He has spent his entire eight-year career with the Chiefs.

Travis Kelce had a slow start to his NFL career during his rookie season, as he was unable to record a single stat. However, he announced himself in his second year with the Chiefs. In his third year, Kelce continued to improve and became one of the elite tight ends in the NFL.

Let's take a look at how Travis Kelce has separated himself from the rest of the tight ends in the NFL to become the best at his position.

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Travis Kelce's rise to the top of the NFL at tight end

Denver Broncos v Kansas City Chiefs

Travis Kelce only needed three seasons to prove that he was one of the best tight ends in the NFL. After back-to-back seasons with 800 receiving yards, Kelce finally cracked the 1,000 yard mark at tight end in year three. Since then, Travis Kelce has went over 1,000 receiving yards in the past five seasons.

Hey, #ChiefsKingdom! @tkelce wanted to say thanks for all the votes for this year’s Walter Payton Man of the Year Charity Challenge! @Nationwide pic.twitter.com/XyCc5cQo3R

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) January 23, 2021

In 2018 Kelce recorded 103 receptions for 1,336 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. These were all career highs for the former Bearcat tight end. It became apparent that Travis Kelce was not stopping at just being an elite tight end, he wanted to be the best in the game.

During the 2019 NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end saw a dip in production. He record six receptions less and five touchdowns short of his 2018 numbers. Kelce was just behind the San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle in the talks of the best tight end in the NFL.

Travis Kelce was a huge reason why the Chiefs walked away as Super Bowl champions in the 2019-2020 NFL season. During the playoff run he recorded 19 receptions for 207 yards and four touchdowns. Kelce also averaged 10.9 yards per reception during the Chiefs' run at the Lombardi Trophy.

Travis Kelce: PFF's Highest-Graded TE of 2020 🥇 🏆 pic.twitter.com/cVX5rCwmfD

— PFF (@PFF) January 7, 2021

During the 2020-2021 NFL season, Travis Kelce separated himself from every other tight end in the NFL. He broke all of his career highs in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns. Kelce was also a huge part in the Chiefs winning back-to-back AFC Championships.

Travis Kelce is one of the key components to the Kansas City Chiefs offense. He is also one of the pieces that the Chiefs cannot lose if they want to continue their success. Travis Kelce is going to make a run at the tight end records in the NFL and could break many, if not all of them before he retires from football. One thing is certain, Travis Kelce will have a rightful place in the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame when his career is over.