In preparation for the Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick has spent time watching a player he called “one of the best receivers in the league.”
It’s not Tyreek Hill, the Chiefs’ star wideout. It’s Travis Kelce.
While Kelce is technically listed as a tight end, Belichick doesn’t see that designation as entirely accurate.
“Call Kelce whatever you want. He’s one of the best receivers in the league. He’s their leading receiver,” Belichick said during a press conference on Wednesday. “You can put him up against any receiver in the league and statistically he’ll match up against anyone you want to put him against over the last five years. So you can call him whatever you want to call him.”
The Chiefs typically run three-receiver sets, with a rotation of Hill, Sammy Watkins, Mecole Hardman, Demarcus Robinson and Byron Pringle. But Belichick argued that Kansas City is really just running four-receiver sets, considering Kelce’s versatility to operate as a wideout. That shows in Kelce’s route-tree, the array of routes he can run on any given play.
“It’s probably bigger than anybody in the league,” Belichick said. “He’s got every tight end route. He’s got every receiver route. There’s not a route he doesn’t run. He does everything but run routes out of the backfield. Probably does some of that, but maybe they’re saving that.”
Through 12 games in 2019, Kelce has 68 receptions, 923 yards and four touchdowns. He is on pace to have one of his best seasons of his career, though he may not eclipse his impressive career-highs from 2018 when he had 103 catches, 1,336 yards and 10 touchdowns.
“He’s good at everything,” Belichick said. “He’s big. He’s fast. He’s good after the catch. He does a really good job of gaining leverage on defenders. He also sets up a lot of other — creates space for players as well. He’s smart — very smart. Good at all of it. Hard guy to tackle when he gets the ball.”
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