Kansas City Chiefs: Current Tight Ends On Roster

By Leigh Oleszczak | May 24, 2015

The Kansas City Chiefs have always been a team in the NFL that relies on their strong tight ends to get down the field and score touchdowns. Back in the days of Tony Gonzalez at Arrowhead, fans were use to seeing him make big plays week after week.

Now with Travis Kelce as the starting tight end going into 2015, fans are getting to see that type of tight end dominance in Kansas City again. Kelce, a 2013 third round pick out of Cincinnati, has been in the NFL for two years, but had to miss his entire rookie season after being put on the injured reserve list during the preseason that year.

In 2014, his first official year in the pros, Kelce came out swinging for the Chiefs. He started in 11 games and accounted for 67 receptions with 862 yards and five touchdowns. Kelce’s fire and passion for the game was shown on the field each and every week, and he has quickly become a fan favorite in Kansas City. Not to mention his touchdown dances were top notch (Source of link: Chris Thorman of Arrowhead Pride).

With Anthony Fasano being released in March, all signs point to Travis Kelce being the starting tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2015. He’s proven that he’s a force to be reckoned with on the offensive side of the ball. The only thing he really needs to work on is holding onto the ball, as he fumbled four times, losing three of those fumbles.

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Other options for the Chiefs at the tight end spot are Demetrius Harris, Richard Gordon, Ryan Taylor, Adam Schiltz, and 2015 fifth round pick James O’Shaughnessy.

I was glad to see Kansas City take a tight end in the draft this year because I’m not confident with Harris and Gordon as backups. Sure, O’Shaughnessy is a fifth round pick and out of a smaller school, but he could at least provide some insurance in the position.

Harris played basketball at Milwaukee-Wisconsin and has been a work in progress for the Kansas City Chiefs since they signed him in 2013. In his two seasons with the Chiefs, he’s had three receptions for 20 yards in eight games (three of which he started in).

Gordon attended the University of Miami and was a sixth round draft choice by the Oakland Raiders in 2011. Since then he’s spent time with the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans. His time with the Chiefs has seen him with one reception for three yards in four games (he only started one of those).

Taylor is a former seventh round pick out of North Carolina who played for the Green Bay Packers for three years before spending time with the Ravens and Browns. He had one touchdown his rookie year with the Packers, and that’s all he’s managed to haul in in 59 games. I didn’t even realize Taylor was on the team until I looked at the Chiefs’ official roster on their website.

Schiltz attended Emporia State University (a Division II school in Kansas) and spent most of the 2014 season on the practice squad for Kansas City.

O’Shaughnessey had 29 receptions for 544 yards and nine touchdowns in his final year with the Illinois State Redbirds. He’s not likely going to see a ton of playing time in 2015, but he could be an option in the future for sure depending on how this season goes.

More than likely, it’ll be Travis Kelce and Demetrius Harris as the two starting tight ends unless the Chiefs decide to sign a free agent tight end during the off season. Gordon hasn’t done anything for Kansas City, Taylor is an unknown, and Schiltz has little chance of starting (or even playing) for the team unless some type of injury happens to Kelce. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen though.

The Kansas City Chiefs should be a good team in 2015 and are the favorites to win the AFC West this year. Hopefully Travis Kelce and the other tight ends can help out Alex Smith and make some big plays to help this team round that corner of winning a playoff game.

Next: Can the Chiefs Win the AFC West in 2015?

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