Kansas City Chiefs TE Travis Kelce has dominated the Denver Broncos over the last decade and he can put an exclamation point on that dominance on Sunday.
On the back of a performance where he set a new personal best for receptions in a single game, Kelce has a chance to move up the NFL's all-time receiving yardage leaderboards. Kelce (11,763) currently ranks fourth in league history behind former Chargers TE Antonio Gates (11,841), former Cowboys TE Jason Witten (13,046), and former Chiefs TE Tony Gonzalez (15,127). He passed former Broncos TE Shannon Sharpe in 2022 for his current spot on the list.
With just 79 yards against Denver on Sunday, he'll have surpassed Gates to hold the No. 3 spot. It took Gates 236 regular season games to reach that mark. If Kelce surpasses Gates on Sunday, he'll have done so in 168 regular season games. Kelce has already surpassed Gates (955) for the third-most receptions all-time (959) by a tight end in NFL history.
Kelce's career average against the Broncos is 77.5 yards on the dot. He's played 19 games against Denver during his 12-year NFL career. During that span, he's caught 116 of 168 targets for 1,472 yards and six touchdowns. He basically has a season's worth of production against Denver under his belt. Those receptions and yards would be career-highs over a season, by the way.
It's not unreasonable to expect Kelce to secure the No. 3 spot in Week 10 against the Broncos at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. While Kelce hasn't met his prior production levels this season, he's improved significantly over the past five games, averaging 73.2 yards per game. He just recorded his first 100-yard performance of the season. With WR DeAndre Hopkins settling into the offense, his production should only increase, even against a stout defense. The Broncos have allowed 44 receptions on 61 targets for 372 yards and two scores to tight ends this season.
Kelce, of course, will have no mention of this achievement if he meets. He has his eyes on a bigger prize and any individual accomplishments along the way are just gravy.
