NFL fans and ‘Swifties’ alike are heading into 2025 fantasy football drafts with a burning question on their mind. Should I really spend a pick on Travis Kelce?
Kelce has long been one of the NFL’s best tight ends, but he has posted back-to-back seasons with less than 1,000 receiving yards. He has still averaged 95 catches over the last couple of seasons, but his suppressed yardage and touchdown totals have kept him out of the top-tier tight end group in non-PPR leagues.
Is there reason to believe Kelce can bounce back and be a bit more explosive in 2025? He will turn 36 in October and averaged a career-low 8.5 yards per reception last year, so history suggests it might be difficult.
That said, Kelce made a change to his offseason training program which could invigorate him. Those seeking good vibes will also note that he became engaged to Taylor Swift on eve of the 2025 NFL season. Perhaps that will energize him as he prepares for his 13th – and, potentially, final – campaign.
Here’s the fantasy outlook for Kelce and a breakdown of whether and when to draft him.
Should you draft Travis Kelce in fantasy football?
Kelce seems primed for a potential bounce-back season in 2025. The reason for this? He spent the offseason training to be more explosive.
Kelce returned to working with trainer Tony Villani after taking a two-year hiatus to focus on his acting career. Villani has trained Kelce since his preparations for the 2013 NFL Combine and has worked with numerous NFL athletes.
‘He was neglecting that ability to go from 17 to 20 miles an hour,’ Villani said, before adding. ‘He may have gotten comfortable because he kept getting open. He had 93 and 97 catches, but he didn’t have that threat after the catch. He has the moves, but not the juice.’
Villani and Kelce focused on improving the tight end’s speed and explosiveness during offseason training. Kelce arrived at Villani’s gym able to reach a maximum speed of 18.3 mph without pads; after weeks of training, he increased that figure to 20.6 mph.
Based on those results, Villani expects Kelce will have ‘a little bit more juicing yards after the catch’ during the 2025 season.
That could be all Kelce needs to emerge as a high-end fantasy asset. He averaged just 3.5 yards after the catch (YAC) per reception last season, down from an average of 5.0 the previous season and 5.9 from his All-Pro first team season in 2022.
Kelce ranked as the No. 3 fantasy tight end in 2023 when he averaged 5.0 YAC per reception. If he can get back to those numbers this season, he will have a chance to vastly outperform his average draft position (ADP) as the TE6 – especially since he has remained Patrick Mahomes’ most targeted player the last two seasons.
If you’re looking for a more ‘vibes’ reason to back Kelce, consider this: Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and actress Hailee Steinfeld became engaged Nov. 22, 2024. In five regular-season games after the engagement, Allen averaged 31.36 fantasy points per game while throwing for 1,188 yards, rushing for 215 and totaling 17 touchdowns.
Could Kelce’s engagement to Swift have a similar impact? Maybe not, but if Kelce is happy and focused on what could be his last NFL season, he could go out with a bang.
Verdict: If Kelce’s training pays off, he should be more explosive in 2025 than he was last season. That will give him a chance to re-emerge as a top-three fantasy tight end, a role he occupied every season from 2016 to 2023.
Even if he doesn’t reach those same heights, Kelce should be a consistent target machine and one of the more reliable options in PPR leagues. Don’t be afraid to target him in Round 4-5 of fantasy drafts if you’re looking to land a tight end early.
