Travis Kelce climbs to No. 4 on Chiefs all-time receiving yards list

Tight end Travis Kelce is fourth on the Chiefs all-time receiving yards list.

This current crop of Kansas City Chiefs players is going to rewrite many of the team’s records when all is said and done, and All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce is already beginning to cement his name alongside the all-time franchise greats.

On Sunday, Kelce put up a workmanlike effort of 9 catches for 90 yards and 1 touchdown against the L.A. Chargers. It’s the sort of reliable performance that Chiefs fans have come to appreciate so much over the years, knowing that quarterbacks like Alex Smith and now Patrick Mahomes have such a dependable target in the middle of the field. With that effort, Kelce moved into fourth place on the Chiefs all-time receiving yards list.

To date this season, Kelce has 15 catches for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns. He’s well on his way to another 1,000-yard plus season, of which he has four consecutive efforts. The record for most consecutive seasons over that total is already his with four and any further ability to establish that mark will only place more distance between himself and any competition for the goal.

On a franchise level, Kelce now has 522 career catches for 6,605 receiving yards and 37 touchdowns. In 9 playoff appearances, he’s put up another 52 catches for 632 yards and 6 scores.

Kelce’s move up to fourth place in total receiving yards with 6,605 put him over former Chiefs wide receiver Henry Marshall who played from ’76 to ’87—a remarkable model of consistent production during perhaps the team’s most abysmal stretch of mediocrity.

It is very possible that, by season’s end, we will be referring to Kelce as the player in second place on the Chiefs all-time receiving yards list. Dwayne Bowe is next at No. 3 with 7,155 yards and wide receiver Otis Taylor comes after that at No. 2 with 7,306. If Kelce eclipses the thousand-yard mark, then he will definitely rise to just behind Tony Gonzalez for the most receiving yards in franchise history.

As for ever catching Gonzalez, Kelce could certainly do so, but he’ll need to maintain his current level of production in the face of injuries and age. There’s a reason why even elite players hit the wall at some point due to declining skills, which is why Gonzalez was a first-ballot Hall of Fame player. His mark of 10,940 yards is incredible—and even more amazing when you consider that he added over 4K more yards with the Atlanta Falcons.

Kelce has been named to five straight Pro Bowls and has earned four straight first or second team All-Pro designations in his career.