Chiefs add Travis Kelce backup in free agency

The Kansas City Chiefs are reportedly in agreement with tight end Irv Smith Jr. on a one-year contract for him to become the backup to Travis Kelce, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.

The Chiefs have bolstered their tight end depth with the signing of Irv Smith Jr. He is an experienced player who spent three years with the Minnesota Vikings and one year with the Cincinnati Bengals before coming to the Chiefs. He is not much of a receiving threat, but hopefully should provide some help in the blocking department.

The tight end room in Kansas City seems settled. It will be interesting to see if the Chiefs add any help in the wide receiver department, whether it be in free agency or the draft. Despite winning the Super Bowl, the wide receiver room let down the Chiefs at points last year, and a miscue at a key moment could have cost the team a championship.

There are options still available in free agency, but this year’s draft is very deep at the wide receiver position, and there will likely be a high-quality prospect available when the Chiefs are on the clock at the end of the first round.

This is definitely a smaller move from the Chiefs. They locked Chris Jones into a long-term contract, and they will still have to figure out a solution for L’Jarius Sneed, whether that be keeping him to trading him.

For now, they made a depth move to add Smith to the roster for the 2024 season.