Kansas City Chiefs sign new tight end despite Travis Kelce retirement decision with fears he could ‘replace’ icon

DESPITE Travis Kelce’s decision to return to the Kansas City Chiefs, the team might be bracing for his departure in the future.

On Tuesday, the Kansas City Chiefs signed tight end Robert Tonyan in free agency.

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Tonyan is a seven-year veteran in the NFL, formerly playing for the Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears, and Minnesota Vikings.

He was originally signed by the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2018 out of Indiana State.

Tonyan mainly served as a rotational player, never accumulating over 600 yards in a season.

However, he was always a touchdown threat and scored a whopping 11 in the 2020 season.

Tonyan’s production has slowed since then though, and despite playing in five games last season, he didn’t record a single stat.

The tight end is heading into his age-31 season, and could serve a larger role in the Chiefs offense that heavily utilizes the position.

Tonyan did serve on the Chiefs’ practice squad last season, and the team must have liked him enough to keep him around.

He will still have to compete with Travis Kelce and his capable backup Noah Gray.

Tonyan likely won’t get much playing time until Kelce retires though, and that won’t be until at least after the 2025 season.

“I think the biggest thing is that I f***ing love playing the game of football,” he said on the New Heights podcast.

“I love playing. I still feel like I can play it at a high level and possibly at a higher level than I did last year.

“I don’t think it was my best outing. I think I let my guys down in a lot more moments than I helped them, especially if you look at my track record and how I’ve been in years past.

“I want to give it a good run. I got a bad taste in my mouth in how I ended last year and how well I was playing and how accountable I was to the people around me.

“I love so many people in Kansas City, both in that facility, in the community, and it’s home for me now.

“I don’t want to leave that life yet. I put in a lot of hard work and I put in a lot of focus into being the best that I can for K.C. Last year it didn’t end well for us.

“I just feel like there’s a responsibility in me to play out the contract that I initially signed, to give Kansas City and the Chiefs organization everything that I’ve got, and that’s what I’m going to do, man.”

Kelce had the worst season of his career in, setting lows in multiple categories.

His 823 yards and three touchdowns were the worst marks he has ever produced, but he is adamant that he can improve in 2025.

If he doesn’t, Tonyan will be ready and waiting on the sidelines to take over.