Who Should I Start? Travis Kelce or Austin Hooper

Thursday, June 19, 6:10 PM

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said he's not inclined to limit tight end Travis Kelce's snaps this year or make concessions to his age (35) after he briefly contemplated retirement in the offseason. "I'm not feeling that," Reid said. "It would be similar to last year I would imagine as it goes. So, he's in great shape right now, so I think he's looking forward to getting going." However, Reid said he will continue to monitor Kelce as training camp and the regular season progress and makes changes if necessary. Kelce had the third-highest snap count and ran the fourth-most routes of his career in 2024, which bodes well for him staying heavily involved in the offense in 2025. However, the 10-time Pro Bowler and four-time All-Pro's numbers took another dip (97-823-3 line in 16 regular-season starts), making it clear that his ceiling probably is no longer as an elite, high-end fantasy TE1.

Sunday, March 9, 8:57 PM

The New England Patriots are re-signing veteran tight end Austin Hooper to a one-year, $5 million deal with a max value of $7 million. Hooper, a two-time Pro Bowler, notched 45 receptions and 476 yards with New England a season ago, his highest marks since his 2021 stint with the Cleveland Browns. While he began the 2024 season cold, the 30-year-old picked it up over the back half -- racking up four catches in five of his last seven appearances as then-rookie signal-caller Drake Maye got acclimated to the NFL. The Stanford product played second fiddle to fellow tight end Hunter Henry last season and figures to do so again if his teammate stays healthy, as the latter out-paced the former handily in snaps (835-575) despite playing in one fewer contest. It's possible Hooper returns some TE2 value this upcoming season, but he's better off left to waivers until he proves otherwise.