Chiefs to bring back TE on one-year deal

The Chiefs have lost several offensive contributors this offseason, but they will bring back one of their backup tight ends. Blake Bell agreed to terms to stay in Kansas City on Friday.

Bell and the Chiefs agreed on a one-year deal, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Bell, who is going into his ninth NFL season, is now in a position to play a fourth season with the Chiefs.

Although Bell’s Chiefs tenure has been split up into two stints, he was on both the team’s recent Super Bowl-winning teams. The former 49ers draftee caught on with the Chiefs in 2019 but signed with the Cowboys in 2020. He wound up back in Kansas City a year later and has now agreed to remain in place as a Travis Kelce backup.

The Chiefs have used Bell, 31, as a starter in 13 games. He was unable to make much of a contribution last season due to a hip injury. Bell landed on IR before the start of last season and missed 13 regular-season games. The eventual Super Bowl champions, however, used one of their injury activations on Bell once he was ready to return. The 6-foot-6 tight end did re-emerge to catch his first career touchdown pass — a 17-yarder against the Broncos on New Year’s Day — and play in each of the Chiefs’ three playoff games.

Bell’s career has also included stops with the Vikings and Jaguars — from 2017-18 — but he is best known for being one of Kelce’s sidekicks. The Chiefs have a younger player in that role now, in 2021 fifth-round pick Noah Gray. The second-year player emerged as an interesting receiving option in the Patrick Mahomes-piloted offense last season, catching 28 passes for 299 yards, but the Chiefs are still freeing up a spot for Bell to come back.