George Kittle or Travis Kelce? The NFL's best tight end debate is more one-sided than you think

Vinnie Iyer

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George Kittle or Travis Kelce? The NFL's best tight end debate is more one-sided than you think image

Watch a 49ers game, and George Kittle is lauded as the NFL's best tight end any time he makes a play. Watch a Chiefs game, and the same thing often happens with Travis Kelce.

There's no question, then, that the best tight end in the league will be on the field for Super Bowl 54. Because of that, neither will be playing in Pro Bowl 2020, but Kittle (NFC) and Kelce (AFC) would have also started for their respective conferences in that game.

The Associated Press, the Pro Football Writers of America and Pro Football Focus all honored Kittle as first-team All-Pro for 2019, but Sporting News, based on voting by NFL head coaches, gave the nod to Kelce.

Before the season, SN ranked the top 10 tight ends in the NFL, taking into account both receiving and blocking prowess. Nothing that happened this past season on San Francisco's or Kansas City's path to the Super Bowl has changed our mind. It's still Kittle over the middle for the win.

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As for who channels NFL tight end emeritus Rob Gronkowski better off the field is a different story. But on the field, Kittle clearly takes the caboodle over Kelce.

Kittle (6-4, 250 pounds) and Kelce (6-5, 260 pounds) are mostly even when it comes to the tale of the tape. Kelce, 30, is more durable and accomplished, with six straight stellar season under his belt while missing only eight of 96 games in that span. Kittle, 26, has had only two healthy seasons as a starter after being drafted in the fifth round in 2017.

So far, Kittle's average season is 86.5 catches for 1,215 yards and 5 TDs. For Kelce, it is 84.5 catches for 1,078 yards and 6.2 TDs. Kittle averages 13.6 yards per catch. Kelce is at 12.8.

There may not be much to separate them there, but keep in mind that with 1,377 receiving yards in 2018, Kittle set the single-season record for the position — by ripping the Rams for 149 in Week 17 to finish 41 yards ahead of Kelce, who held the short-lived mark of 1,336 yards.

But in the era of fantasy football and numbers, don't forget about the other big job of a tight end — blocking. Kelce is a pretty good pass blocker for Patrick Mahomes when he's not running crisp routes across the middle. Kelce has improved in helping out the running game since he first entered the league as a third-round pick (and former Wildcat quarterback) from Cincinnati in 2013.

Kittle, however, was raised as a blocker first in Iowa's run-heavy, tight end-friendly program. His blocking got him on the radar, and with limited production in the passing game with the Hawkeyes, many teams failed to realize his untapped field-stretching and dominant physical potential.

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The 49ers had the No. 2 running game in the NFL this season because of Kittle's ability to supplement their offensive line. He is nasty at pushing everyone around, just like he is in dragging guys with him after the catch.

The 49ers may not be in the Super Bowl without the play of the year — Kittle carrying Saints downfield on a fourth-and-2 conversion to set up his team for a late-game winning field goal in New Orleans on Dec. 8.

There's more of a Gronk-like intimidation factor with Kittle than there is with Kelce, the Eagles' Zach Ertz or anyone else. If you pay too little attention to him, like many teams did, you will get destroyed. If you try to take him out of the game, it opens up the rest of the passing game. When he's not catching passes much, like the Vikings and Packers' playoff games, he's still having a massive effect with his run blocking.

Take it from Gronkowski himself: He was pretty definitive when asked about Kittle earlier this year — that he's the one who reminds him most of him.

Really, when you take the blocking into account, "Who is the NFL's best tight end?" is not really a debate. This also will play out on Super Bowl Sunday, where Kittle has lesser chance to be contained in any way than Kelce does. It's Kittle, case closed with the door body-slammed shut on Kelce.

Vinnie Iyer

Vinnie Iyer Photo

Vinnie Iyer, has been with TSN since 1999, not long after graduating from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. He has produced NFL content for more than 20 years, turning his attention to full-time writing in 2007. A native of St. Louis, Mo. but now a long-time resident of Charlotte, N.C. Vinnie’s top two professional sports teams are Cardinals and Blues, but he also carries purple pride for all things Northwestern Wildcats. He covers every aspect of the NFL for TSN including player evaluations, gambling and fantasy football, where he is a key contributor. Vinnie represents TSN as host of the “Locked On Fantasy Football” podcast on the Locked On network. Over his many years at TSN, he’s also written about MLB, NBA, NASCAR, college football, tennis, horse racing, film and television. His can’t-miss program remains “Jeopardy!”, where he was once a three-day champion and he is still avid about crossword puzzles and trivia games. When not watching sports or his favorite game show, Vinnie is probably watching a DC, Marvel or Star Wars-related TV or movie.