Travis Michael Kelce (; born October 5, 1989) is an American football tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Chiefs in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Cincinnati. He is a three-time Pro Bowler, one-time All-Pro, and was ranked 26th by his fellow players, and second among tight ends, on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.
Video Travis Kelce
High school career
Kelce attended Cleveland Heights High School in his hometown of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, where he was a three-sport athlete in football, basketball, and baseball. Excelling at football, he was a three-year letter winner at quarterback for the Tigers, and recognized with All-Lake Erie League honors after totaling 2,539 yards of total offense as a senior. He collected 1,016 yards rushing, including 10 touchdowns and 1,523 passing yards on 103-of-198 attempts, with 21 scores and eight interceptions in 2007. In baseball, he was scouted by former Atlanta Braves and Kansas City Royals scout, Reggie Sanders. Sanders projected Travis as a potential Major League outfielder due to his unique size, speed and skill set. During Kelce's senior year, he was the top high school hitter in Northeast Ohio with a .577 batting average.
Maps Travis Kelce
College career
Considered a two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Kelce accepted a scholarship offer from the University of Cincinnati over offers from Akron, Eastern Michigan, and Miami of Ohio. He joined his brother, Jason Kelce, who was already the center for the Bearcats. After redshirting in 2008, he appeared in 11 games, playing at tight end and quarterback out of the Wildcat formation. He tallied eight rushes for 47 yards and two touchdowns along with one reception for three yards in 2009. The following season, he did not play due to a violation of team rules. After serving a one-year suspension, Kelce was back with the team to start the 2011 season. For the season, he saw action in games as a tight end and recorded 13 catches totaling 150 yards and two touchdowns. In his last collegiate season, he set personal career highs in receptions (45), receiving yards (722), yards per receptions (16.0), and receiving touchdowns (8), he also earned first-team all-conference honors. In March 2012, Kelce was named winner of the College Football Performance Awards Tight End of the Year.
Professional career
2013 season
Kelce was drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs in the third round (63rd pick overall) of the 2013 NFL Draft. The Chiefs had hired Andy Reid as their new head coach during the off-season. Reid was familiar with Kelce after he had drafted and coached his brother, Jason Kelce, during his time as the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles. On June 6, 2013, the Chiefs signed him to a four-year, $3.12 million rookie contract that also included a signing bonus of $703,304. On October 12, Kelce was placed on injured reserve after only playing in one game during the season recording no statistics.
2014 season
Kelce was the Chiefs leading receiver during the 2014 season, totaling 862 yards off 67 receptions. On November 30 he was fined $11,025 for "unsportsmanlike conduct" during a 29-16 loss to the Denver Broncos. Kelce made an inappropriate hand gesture and simulated a jerking motion at the Broncos linebacker Von Miller. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid later called this "immature".
2015 season
Kelce began 2015 with his first career multiple touchdown game, with six receptions for 106 yards and two scores against Houston. It was his only 100+ yard game, but he had at least one reception in all 16 games, and was ranked a top-5 tight end by ESPN. He started all 16 regular season games and recorded 72 catches for 875 yards and five touchdowns, earning his way to his first Pro Bowl.
2016 season
On January 29, 2016, Kelce signed a five-year, $46 million contract extension. He was ranked 91st by his fellow players on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2016. In a November 6 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, he was ejected after receiving two "unsportsmanlike conduct" penalties after arguing with two referees over not having a pass interference penalty called. The second resulted from him sarcastically throwing his towel at an official in a flagging motion due to being upset about the first penalty. He was later fined $24,309 for his outburst. On December 8, he recorded 101 receiving yards against the Oakland Raiders, his fourth consecutive game topping 100. He joined Jimmy Graham and former Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez as the only NFL tight ends ever to do so. In a Christmas Day win over Denver, he had career bests of 11 receptions for 160 yards, along with a touchdown. He finished the season with career highs in yards (1,125) and receptions (85). His 1,125 receiving yards led the league among tight ends and his 85 receptions were second among tight ends behind Dennis Pitta of the Baltimore Ravens. Kelce's 634 yards after the catch also led all NFL tight ends. He was named as a starter in his second career Pro Bowl, held on December 20, 2016. He was also named First-team All-Pro. He was ranked 26th by his fellow players, and second among tight ends, on the NFL Top 100 Players of 2017.
2017 season
On September 17, 2017, in Week 2 against the Philadelphia Eagles, Kelce had eight receptions for 103 yards and a touchdown in the 27-20 victory. After just one reception for one yard in Week 3, Kelce recorded seven receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown in Week 4 followed by eight for 98 in Week 5. In Week 8, he had seven receptions for 133 yards to pass Zach Ertz as the NFL's leading tight end in both categories, along with a touchdown. During Week 13 against the New York Jets, Kelce opened the game with spectacular fashion as he scored 2 touchdowns on 90 receiving yards in the first quarter after 2 minutes and 46 seconds has passed since regulation began. He finished the game with 94 receiving yards on 4 receptions, but the Chiefs lost 31-38. On December 19, 2017, Kelce was named to his third straight Pro Bowl. Kelce finished the season with a career-high 8 receiving touchdowns.
Personal life
Travis Kelce is the younger brother of Jason Kelce, center for the Philadelphia Eagles.
On January 29, 2016, E! Entertainment Television announced that Kelce would be starring in his own dating show, "Catching Kelce". The show proposed pitting women from each state competing against each other over the bachelor. Kelce is currently dating Kayla Nicole, a reporter for HotNewHipHop.
References
External links
- Cincinnati Bearcats bio
- Kansas City Chiefs bio
Source of article : Wikipedia
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