Steelers rookie explains why Travis Kelce isn’t a top-five TE

Pittsburgh Steelers 2023 third-round pick Darnell Washington plays tight end, so he knows a thing or two about the position.

However, when he was asked by teammate Patrick Peterson and former Steeler Bryant McFadden on their “All Things Covered” podcast to name his top-five tight ends heading into 2023, both were shocked when Washington’s list did not include Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro tight end Travis Kelce.

“Travis Kelce is good, he’s great, he’s put up the numbers,” Washington said. “Yes, he’s listed as a tight end and things like that, he’s in tight end formations here and there, but like to me, he’s just a bigger receiver. He’s mainly split out. That’s just (the Chiefs) offense.”

Washington’s list did include Pittsburgh’s Pat Freiermuth, San Francisco’s George Kittle, New York’s Darren Waller, Baltimore’s Mark Andrews and Arizona’s Zach Ertz.

The 21-year-old rookie compared Kelce’s usage to Kyle Pitts when he was at the University of Florida and Brock Bowers at the University of Georgia, where both lined up less as traditional tight ends and were used employed more as slot receivers.

Despite having some of the best numbers for a tight end in 2019 (54 receptions, 649 yards, five touchdowns), Pitts did not win the John Mackey Award, which is given annually to the top tight end in college football. The same goes for Bowers, who despite totaling 56 receptions, 882 yards and 13 touchdowns as a freshman in 2021, did not win the Mackey Award either.

Whether you agree or not with Washington’s assessment, Kelce is having a Hall of Fame career. A four-time All-Pro and eight-time Pro Bowler, Kelce ranks fourth among tight ends in NFL history in receptions (814) and receiving yards (10,344), sixth in touchdowns (69) and first in yards per game (71.8). 

The 33-year-old became the fastest tight end to reach 10,000 yards and 800 receptions, and he owns the NFL record for most consecutive 1,000-yard seasons by a tight end (seven).