Broncos just signed a tight end who caught passes before the iPhone existed

For those who thought Travis Kelce might be on his final tour around the National Football League, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has a new measuring stick for longevity at the position. Apparently, Kelce can stick around for several more seasons if he wants.

The Denver Broncos signed a new tight end to their practice squad on Wednesday. While the addition is likely to have a negligible impact on the actual team's performance, the decision to add Marcedes Lewis is notable for one primary reason. He's 41 years old.

Lewis is joining the Broncos' practice squad, per ESPN reporter Adam Schefter, after a tryout with the team this week. That means fans aren't likely to see too much of Lewis in action, but the fact that he's still able to garner attention, let alone a contract, is worth mentioning all the same.

To put things in perspective, Lewis made his debut with the Jacksonville Jaguars back in 2006. Kelce was midway through high school at this point, and would go on to redshirt with the Cincinnati Bearcats in 2008. Kelce wouldn't be drafted until 2013, and since his rookie season was ruined by injury, Chiefs Kingdom wouldn't fall in love with Kelce until 2014 when he caught his first pass.

At the point that Kelce literally put up his first stats in the NFL, Lewis had already played in 120 NFL games across eight NFL seasons—all in Jacksonville. That's astounding.

For older Chiefs fans, 2006 was also the year that the team drafted Tamba Hali in the first round and Brodie Croyle in the third. Herm Edwards was in his first season as head coach. Larry Johnson was among the most productive backs in football, and Eddie Kennison anchored the wide receiver room. Patrick Surtain, the original version, was roaming the Chiefs' secondary. Now, Surtain's son is teammates with Lewis.

Want some pop culture reference points? The Nintendo Wii came out during his rookie year, and the iPhone wasn't even released until Lewis' second season in the league. Miley Cyrus debuted as Hannah Montana, and High School Musical was all the rage. Yeah, it's been that long.

That said, it's not as if this is a major curveball by the Broncos, by the way. In case you weren't watching, Lewis played in all 17 games last season with the Chicago Bears and even started four of them. The guy is a true Ironman, having played 165 games after turning 30 years old. To date, he has 437 catches for 5,115 yards and 40 touchdowns in 285 career games.

If Lewis is still cashing NFL checks at 41, the “final chapter” talk around Kelce feels premature. Perhaps he has a much longer shelf life than we thought.