The Travis Kelce vs. George Kittle debate used to be a worthy and fun one.
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. Had it occurred last season, or the season before that, or even in the first week or two of this one, it would have included one of the coolest subplots in football. The two-week hype cycle leading up to that title game, in February 2020, leaned heavily on the question of who was the NFL’s best tight end, and it was the rare talking-head prompt that didn’t get old.
The Chiefs’ Travis Kelce had gaudier numbers and more balletic highlights but abdicated something of the soul of the position. Did he ever throw a real block? The Niners’brought down tough catches over the middle, at a slightly lower clip than Kelce, but spent the rest of his time putting defenders on their asses.
The simplest explanation is the saddest. Kittle is now six seasons into a uniquely tiring pro football career. The requirements of his job, and the fervor with which he fulfills them, have him corralling passes as safeties launch into his ribs, battering through tacklers in pursuit of first downs, and ramming his shoulders into the chest plates of men 50 pounds heavier than he is to clear space for a running back.
But the subsurface numbers paint a picture of a player who may still yet have it in him. Kittle is getting 3.1 yards of separation on his average route, per NFL Next Gen Stats — a hair shy of the 3.3 of his lone first-team All-Pro season in 2019. He’s hauled in 76% of the balls thrown to him, likewise in line with 2019’s 79%.
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