NFL evaluators are increasingly skeptical of Travis Kelce entering his 14th season, with one scout flatly declaring the Kansas City Chiefs tight end done.
The blunt assessment comes as Patrick Mahomes returns from knee surgery and Kansas City leans on an unproven receiving corps, emphasizing concerns about the 36-year-old Kelce’s expiration date.
“Kelce is done. That’s over. What you saw last year – that’s what he is,” one NFL advance scout said, as quoted by insider Jason La Canfora in a report published Tuesday.
Veteran NFL insider La Canfora went further in his own commentary, writing that Kelce — whom he tagged with the nickname “Mr. Taylor Swift” after the high-profile July 3 wedding of Kelce to the global pop superstar — is past his prime and potentially finished as a difference-maker. Some evaluators, La Canfora added, now view Kelce as little more than a short-distance decoy.
Top NFL analyst Brian Baldinger offered a similarly grim outlook on the Chiefs’ passing game as a whole.
“I don’t think they’re a great offense, Jason, I really don’t,” Baldinger told La Canfora. “They don’t look like it to me. They haven’t done enough,” according to La Canfora.
Travis Kelce’s Statistical Drop-Off
Kelce hit career lows across the board in 2025, posting a 7.8 percent drop rate on his targets, nearly double his career average, according to Pro Football Focus tracking. He ran the fourth-most routes of his career yet finished with just 76 receptions, his fewest since 2015, the year before Mahomes took over at quarterback.
His touchdown production cratered. Kelce has scored just 13 touchdowns combined over the last three seasons, down from 12 in 2022 alone, and his 851 receiving yards in 2025 marked his second-lowest full season total.
Air yards per target and separation numbers have declined in step, according to The Athletic‘s offensive breakdown. Kelce also fell from fifth to 10th in ESPN’s annual tight end rankings, though one NFC personnel evaluator still called him “the ageless wonder at the position,” as quoted by Newsweek‘s report on the rankings.
Kelce Skepticism Builds Amid Marriage to Taylor Swift
The doubts extend beyond one scout’s blunt assessment. Former NFL general manager Mike Tannenbaum said this offseason he wouldn’t have brought Kelce back, arguing front offices must pay players for what they’re going to do rather than what they’ve already done, according to a Sports Illustrated report. Some analysts have also connected Kelce’s production dip to the start of his relationship with Swift, which began in 2023.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid has pushed back, at least regarding Kelce’s conditioning.
“He came back in good shape. Everybody thought he was going to come back with this ‘dad bod’ that I heard about. I’m going, ‘This guy looks the same as he’s always looked,'” Reid said at the outset of training camp, according to CBS Sports coverage.
Former MVP quarterback Rich Gannon, who played for Reid, struck a more measured tone.
“Andy will be honest and he’ll address those concerns,” Gannon said, as quoted by La Canfora. “He’ll find a way to get it fixed in every room. With Kelce, he’ll manage that workload and be careful with him.”
Kansas City still has to make a decision on how much of its offense continues running through its 36-year-old tight end.
Travis Kelce ‘Done, Over’ After Taylor Swift Wedding, NFL Scout Says