Who’s the best tight end in the league right now? Different sources might point to different players in the league, but one thing is for sure, Travis Kelce’s name is up there in the top 5 conversation. However, he hasn’t played like a high-caliber player in this season so far. Perhaps that’s the reason why he isn’t on Bill Belichick’s current favorite list.

The 8x Super Bowl-winning coach did an interesting analysis of the current state of the NFL and made his mid-season roster. The Midseason All-Belichick has quarterbacks, running backs, and tight ends of all shapes and sizes, but none that resembles Travis Kelce. We wonder why.

In episode 9 of his podcast, COACH, Belichick made a list of his favorite running backs and tight ends now that the NFL season has reached week 9. Players at the running back spot include Derrick Henry and Saquon Barkley and needless to say they are phenomenal choices and there’s no debate about it.

However, Belichick’s choice of tight ends is something that piques our interest. He has George Kittle, Trey McBride, and Brock Bowers as his tight end. It’s astonishing to see the former New England Patriots head coach choose a rookie (Brock Bowers) over a 3x Super Bowl winning tight end. But the 72-year-old has his reasons behind his choices.

“Kittle is our main tight end,” Belichick revealed on the COACH podcast. “Everybody feels like this guy’s had a tremendous year and just adds the running game for San Francisco a lot of times on the backside of a 3×0 formation and makes a block at the point of attack. He gets the running game going, converts on third downs, scores in the red area.”

Here’s the rundown of Kelce and Kittle’s stats through seven games of the 2024 season.

Kittle was battling a sprained foot when he went against the Dallas Cowboys and still had 128 receiving yards and a touchdown. Those are the opportunities that Travis Kelce isn’t getting these days.

The Kansas City Chiefs have a pretty banged-up roster, and they are improvising in the absence of Rashee Rice, Isaiah Pacheco and Hollywood Brown. Hence, Kelce might not be getting a chance to make some highlight-worthy plays. While Kittle’s run game and blocking prowess have Belichick’s attention, there are others that he would like to utilize.

Midseason All-Belichick Team

• QB: Lamar Jackson, Jared Goff, Patrick Mahomes
• WR: Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase, Chris Godwin, CeeDee Lamb, Nico Collins, Terry McLaurin
• RB & TE: Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, George Kittle, Trey McBride, Brock Bowers
• OL: Tristan Wirfs, Joel Bitonio, Creed Humphrey, Chris Lindstrom, Penei Sewell
• Edge: Aidan Hutchinson, Will Anderson, Myles Garrett, Nick Bosa, Jonathan Greenard
• LB: T.J. Watt, Kyle Van Noy, Andrew Van Ginkel, Roquan Smith, Fred Warner, Zaire Franklin
• Secondary: Denzel Ward, Patrick Surtain II, Marlon Humphrey, Xavier McKinney, Brian Branch

Why does Bill Belichick take a rookie over Travis Kelce?

Without even scoring, Trey McBride is Bill Belichick’s favorite. Per the former NFL coach, Kittle and McBride are very similar in terms of their production. The run game, the end zone numbers and even blocking. The Arizona Cardinals tight end has 42 receptions over 446 yards in a span of 7 games.

That leaves us with Brock Bowers, the former Georgia TE turned a Raider now. 8 games, 52 receptions, 535 yards and a lone touchdown sounds like a dream for a rookie. He’s left Kelce in the rearview mirror as far as the numbers are concerned. His “tremendous production” is the reason why he’s found a spot in Belichick’s good books. He’s the perfect candidate to play as a second tight end too.

Travis Kelce’s production this year is a bit concerning, but Andy Reid can always flip everything upside down. If and when that happens, Belichick might be forced to look back on his decisions (just kidding).