It remains unclear whether Travis Kelce will return to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2026 or not, but the team needs to find his successor regardless of the legendary tight end’s decision. The Chiefs may be able to do that in free agency this offseason by stealing a talented young tight end from another AFC powerhouse.
That tight end is Isaiah Likely of the Baltimore Ravens, and he sounds like he’s ready to leave Baltimore. Sitting down with Jon Gruden for an interview, Likely was asked what message he gave his agent ahead of free agency. The veteran tight end simply said that he wants to blossom, explaining that fellow Ravens tight end Mark Andrews taught him how to be a star tight end, he’s just now seeking a team where he can display it.
Chiefs could provide Isaiah Likely the opportunity to blossom that he’s looking for
This was Likely’s way of saying he’s ready to be a team’s tight end no. 1. With the Ravens recently signing Andrews to a three-year extension, returning to Baltimore won’t give the young tight end that opportunity. That’s why his departure from the Ravens seems inevitable.
Kansas City should be prepared to give Likely what he’s looking for. While a Kelce return is still on the table, it’s clear the future Hall of Famer won’t be playing for many more seasons, so Likely will have the opportunity to be TE1 soon enough. Additionally, he’ll be playing with an elite quarterback in Patrick Mahomes, a winning organization, and a franchise that knows about elite tight end play.
Signing with the Chiefs in free agency would make a ton of sense for Likely, and it would also make plenty of sense for Kansas City. In 63 regular season games with Baltimore, Likely caught 135 passes for 1,568 yards and 15 touchdowns. In five playoff games, the tight end had 11 receptions for 176 yards and two scores.
Likely hasn’t put up TE1 production yet, but he clearly has the talent to do so, and the Chiefs know that. In a 2024 game against Kansas City, Likely caught nine catches for 111 yards and a touchdown, and had another impressive catch that was a centimeter away from being a touchdown, and setting up Baltimore the chance to win or force overtime. The Chiefs are extremely familiar with Likely’s game, so they should go after him in free agency.