![\"Travis](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/GettyImages-2255100511-1.jpg\")
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\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tGetty\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
The Kansas City Chiefs may get lucky by finding the too-easy and perfect Travis Kelce successor in the NFL draft.<\/p>\n
Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> tight end Travis Kelce<\/a> is back with his team<\/a> for at least one more season, and that\u2019s great news, after signing a one-year, $12 million deal with Andy Reid and company. So, the franchise has its star tight end for the 2026-27 season<\/a>, but they still need to look to the future and snag an up-and-coming successor.<\/p>\n Well, the Chiefs got luck this year, because there are a collection of talented tight ends in the 2026 NFL draft. Even though the Kansas City Chiefs pick high in the draft, starting at No. 9, they\u2019ll likely be able to wait to pick a tight end, too, because there are so many available good ones.<\/p>\n Kelce is starting his 14th season with the franchise<\/a>. He\u2019s 36 years old, so this is looking to be his final year in the NFL<\/a>. Reid has been shaping a winning lineup for what will likely be Kelce\u2019s final run, including bringing on Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III<\/a>.<\/p>\n So, what tight end will the Chiefs pick in the 2026 draft? We\u2019ll find out when the event takes place from April 23 to 25, but before then, we can make a projection.<\/p>\n Kansas City Chiefs Projected to Snag Travis Kelce Successor in 2026 NFL Draft at No. 40 Pick<\/p>\n One name keeps popping up in draft projects for the Chiefs when it comes to the tight end position, and that\u2019s\u00a0Eli Stowers out of Vanderbilt<\/a>. In a Sunday, April 5 feature for FanSided, Cody Williams picks Stowers<\/a> for the Chiefs as the team\u2019s No. 40 selection.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels as if this year\u2019s NFL Draft could be chaotic with ground-moving trades and maneuvering, and that\u2019s certainly reflected in our latest three-round 2026 NFL Mock Draft projection,\u201d he notes in the piece.\u201d<\/p>\n For what it\u2019s worth, he has the Chiefs trading up to No. 4 to get edge\u00a0David Bailey of Texas Tech. \u201cThere\u2019s some serious buzz about what the Titans<\/a> could do with their Top 10 pick, but that buzz (specifically with Jeremiyah Love) suggests to me they\u2019re a prime trade-back candidate. And that\u2019s something the Chiefs could take full advantage of.\u201d<\/p>\n But, regarding Stowers, he\u2019s called \u201coutstanding\u201d in his NFL profile. Even though he\u2019s not expected to go early in the draft, he has a glowing review.<\/p>\n \u201cStowers is an explosive quarterback convert with just three years at the tight end position,\u201d the player\u2019s NFL profile states<\/a>. \u201cHe\u2019s an excellent athlete with long arms but needs to keep filling out his frame.\u201d<\/p>\n Tight End is a \u2018Natural Pass Catcher\u2019 for the Chiefs<\/p>\n His NFL profile adds that Stowers is \u201ca natural pass catcher with an outstanding catch radius and massive run-after-catch talent. While his route-running and contested-catch ability need work, he excels at moving the chains on screens\/short catches. He has the speed to threaten downfield against linebackers.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking at the negative side, his run-blocking ceiling may be low, but, \u201chis traits create above-average potential as a pass-catching \u2018F\u2019 tight end, fitting the growing trend of utilizing two- and three-tight-end sets more heavily.\u201d<\/p>\n Back on Sunday, March 15, A to Z Sports also picked him for the Chiefs<\/a>, with Kyle Crabbs predicting it. In that same feature, Crabbs also had the team using their No. 9 pick for Rueben Bain Jr. of Miami.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Chiefs simply sit on their hands and watch Rueben Bain Jr. fall into their lap after Kansas City\u2019s first bad season in 15 years,\u201d he stated. \u201cThe Chiefs haven\u2019t shied away from rushers who lack length via George Karlaftis and Ashton Gillotte. Bain Jr. is a top talent and would be an awesome \u2018best player available\u2019 pick here.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tAnne Erickson<\/a> is an award-winning reporter for Heavy Sports covering the NFL, NBA and college football. Anne Erickson has years of experience covering the NFL and additional sports, and her work has been published via ESPN, Fox Sports and more. She has interviewed some of the biggest names in sports, including Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff. Erickson also hosts several podcasts and is a Detroit-based radio host. More about Anne Erickson<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMore Heavy on Chiefs\n\t\t<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tLoading more stories\n\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty The Kansas City Chiefs may get lucky by finding the too-easy and perfect Travis Kelce successor in…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":856391,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[2063],"tags":[346,7,118,110,2438,2437,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-856390","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-chiefs","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-kansas-city","11":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","12":"tag-kansascity","13":"tag-kansascitychiefs","14":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116356092588632175","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/856390","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=856390"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/856390\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/856391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=856390"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=856390"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=856390"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}