"It hurts my feelings": When Travis Kelce voiced disappointment over his 'negative' draft profile
Travis Kelce has established his name as one of the most famous tight-ends, a challenging role that requires versatility. With 1,004 career receptions, 12,151 receiving yards and 77 touchdowns, he is a certified future Hall of Famer.
However, Kelce didn’t have such a prolific start to his career when he was picked No. 63 in the 2013 NFL draft.
During an appearance on "Dan Parick Show" in January 2017, Kelce was introduced to the ‘negative’ aspect of his NFL draft profile. In response, Kelce appeared to understand the analysis but also expressed disappointment over not being labeled a tremendous athlete.
“I mean, it's somebody's opinion. So, I mean, I can't say it's, it's completely false, right?" Kelce said. "I mean, someone, someone sees something on film, you know, it's a, it's rather a raised question about it than the not raised question about it.
"But, 'He isn't a tremendous athlete' hurts my feelings, because I feel like I'm pretty high up there on the athlete list, at least, at least in the tight end group. That's what I'm putting this into.”
Interestingly, Kelce had some of the best numbers for a tight end during his combine performance. He was billed at 6-foot-5 and 255 lbs and received a prospect grade of 80, i.e. ‘Outstanding,’ with a strong likelihood to become an impact player in the future.
His athletic abilities were also acknowledged as he received a production score of 84 (ranked third among TEs), an athleticism score of 84 (ranked second), and a total score of 83 (ranked second).
He was also compared to former New England Patriots TE and NFL legend Rob Gronkowski in his report. Hence, his disappointment over his NFL profile report was justified.
NFL Draft report highlights Travis Kelce's negatives
While he was disappointed by it, some of the negatives in Travis Kelce's assessment report were valid. His profile report said (as read by him):
“Only one season of production in college, doesn't have blazing speed ... Not a tremendously explosive athlete, doesn't come out of his breaks that well ... Kelce, plays with the pedal to the metal, which isn't always a good thing.
"He doesn't run a wide variety of routes. Doesn't display sudden or sharp breaks and routes character is a big question. He doesn't really produce until 2012, so may label him a potential one-year wonder.”
Kelce was suspended for an entire season at Cincinnati for violating rules, which brought serious concerns over his work ethic and attitude. He also elevated his receiving game only in his senior season. Hence he was labelled a potentially one-season wonder.
However, Kelce proved those negative assessment reports wrong and will one day be a part of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.