The Kansas City Chiefs have the luxury of two top-tier tight ends, and one has emerged in the 2024 season. Noah Gray may not end up being the heir-apparent to Travis Kelce. Suggesting as much would be placing unfair expectations on a young player who is just now finding his footing.

However, as Gray showcased on Sunday against the Carolina Panthers, he is at the very least a red zone threat the Chiefs have at their disposal. Kelce draws so much attention in his own right that other Kansas City targets, specifically Gray on the opposite side of the formation, can get open with regularity.

Gray has seemingly become the Chiefs ‘other’ tight end. He is not on his way to Canton, nor is he dating pop superstar Taylor Swift. However, he is someone opposing teams have to gameplan for, which helps everyone on the roster, including Kelce.

“He does everything the right way and he’s learned a ton from (Kelce) and so he knows how to kind of work within the rules of the offense and get himself open and he’s just a guy that’s going to be in the right spot,” Mahomes said. “As a quarterback, if you’re going to give him the football, he’s going to make the play happen.”

Gray caught two touchdowns against the Panthers (as of this writing), and it’s fair to consider him another elite threat for Mahomes to throw the ball to. Leave it to Brett Veach to accidentally stumble into an ideal replacement for Kelce, who is exiting his prime this season. Mahomes certainly won’t go that far in praising Gray, but he is optimistic as to what the 25-year-old brings to the table.

“He’s not going to talk a lot. He’s going to come to work, do his job, but at the same time, those are the guys you want on your team [because] he’s going to do whatever it takes to win,” Mahomes continued.

Entering Sunday’s game against Carolina, Gray had caught 23-of-26 passes thrown his way, per ESPN. That is the highest catch percentage for any non-running back.

“He’s a good football player and he does a lot for us,” coach Andy Reid said. “He’s one of those guys that doesn’t get a whole lot of credit for all that he does, but he’s a big-time special teams player, a great tight end. We do a bunch of double tight (end) stuff, plus he’s able to spot Kelce and he comes out of games with quite a few snaps because of the special teams.”

Kelce has slowed down a bit this season. There’s no denying that, even if his demise early in the campaign was exaggerated. Gray makes dealing with less of a Kelce impact much more bearable for the Chiefs offense.