Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce already owns the NFL record for 1,000-yard seasons by a tight end, but he’s threatening to put that record out of reach.
Kelce has 968 receiving yards this season, so if he adds 32 more on Sunday against the Broncos, he’ll reach 1,000 on the year. That would make 2022 Kelce’s seventh 1,000-yard season, having reached that milestone every year since 2016.
Not only does Kelce have the record, but no other tight end is close: Tony Gonzalez, Jason Witten and Rob Gronkowski each had four 1,000-yard seasons, which is the second-most for a tight end in NFL history.
George Kittle and Darren Waller each have two 1,000-yard seasons, and no other active tight end has more than one. Kittle probably won’t reach 1,000 yards this season and Waller certainly won’t, which means it will be five years before anyone even has a chance to catch Kelce’s record -- and by that point, Kelce will probably have more than seven 1,000-yard seasons.
With 9,974 receiving yards in his career, Kelce is likely to top 10,000 career yards on Sunday. Only four other tight ends -- Gonzalez, Witten, Antonio Gates and Shannon Sharpe -- have reached 10,000 career yards.
The 33-year-old Kelce looks like he has a few more good years left in him, and he’s playing with a future Hall of Fame quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, so by the time he’s done, Kelce may own every tight end receiving record.
