Getty Images Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
First they secured their franchise quarterback, then they moved on to their defensive tackle. Now, the Kansas City Chiefs are closing in on a deal that will keep tight end Travis Kelce at Arrowhead Stadium for a long time. According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the reigning Super Bowl champions and Kelce’s team have agreed to a 4-year extension worth $57 million with $28 million in guarantees.
The 30-year-old was in the fourth year of a five-year contract and is set to earn base salaries of $8 million and $7.75 million in 2020 and 2021, per NBC Sports.
The Ohio native was trending online well before reports came in mid-afternoon. Thursday morning, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle had agreed to a $75 million extension, keeping him in the Bay Area for five years.
More on George Kittle agreeing to 5-year, $75 million extension:
Prior to Kelce’s deal, check out how the TE pay scale stood.
Highest-paid TE per season (new money average):
1. George Kittle: $15M
2. Hunter Henry: $10.609M (franchise tag)
3. Austin Hooper: $10.5M
4. Travis Kelce: $9.368M
T-5. Rob Gronkowski: $9M
T-5. Kyle Rudolph: $9M
Kelce is completely deserving of this promotion. His numbers truly speak for themselves.
Travis Kelce:
* Only TE to ever record 4 straight 1,000 yard seasons
* Fastest TE ever to 425 career catches and 5,500 receiving yards
* 5X Pro Bowler, 4X All Pro
* Since 2015, 1,031 receiving yards than any other TE and 5th most amongst all players
Unstoppable.
Slowly but surely, the Kansas City Chiefs dynasty is coming together.
How Long Does Patrick Mahomes Want to Play?
According to Mr. Showtime himself, well into his 40s. Mahomes was on “Undisputed” with Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe Wednesday morning and revealed he’d like to rival Tom Brady on active years in the NFL.
“That’s the goal,” No. 15 said. “I’ve talked to a couple of my teammates that have younger kids. I always joke with them and say, ‘I’m going to be playing with your kids whenever you’re watching from home.’ To play until 43, you’ve got to have that mentality that Tom’s had — to not only be great on the football field but to be great off of it; to be able to go out there every single day and take care of your body. I’ve put a good plan together with my trainer every single year so far, and I’m going to try to do that and get as healthy as I possibly can — so that I can be playing at that age.”
Once he ultimately hangs it up, he’ll still be heavily involved in sports. Earlier this summer, Showtime became minority owner of the Kansas City Royals.
“I love baseball,” Mahomes said, according to ESPN. “I grew up in clubhouses. I love everything about it. When the Royals were bought last year by [John Sherman], I wanted to be a part of it. It took a little bit of time. These things take time. So it took almost a year to get the language right and doing it at the right time with everything going on in the world. But we were able to do it and they were able to let me join in with them and be a part of something that’s going to be long-term.”
READ MORE: Details of Patrick Mahomes’ Conversation With Roger Goodell Revealed