It’s safe to say if you were buying cards of NFL draft picks in several years ago, there were plenty of choices you would have made instead of gobbling up Travis Kelce rookie cards. Third round picks are the penny stocks of prospecting, though, and if you were one of the few who believed in him back in 2013, you’ve done well.
The Kelce Chronicle
Ohio native Travis Kelce was not highly recruited coming out of Cleveland Heights High after his senior season. He was a three sport star playing football, basketball and baseball.
After garnering some interest, the high school quarterback accepted a scholarship from the University of Cincinnati, where his brother Jason was already the starting left guard for the team.
Transitioning to tight end and redshirting in 2008, he saw little action for the Bearcats in 2009 recording just one reception for three yards. He missed all of the 2010 season due to disciplinary action that resulted in a season long suspension. He started to make an upward climb as his numbers grew in 2011 and 2012, to the point where he was named first team all-conference in his final year at Cincinnati. Kelce was also awarded the College Football Performance Award Tight End of the Year for 2013.
The emerging athletic pass catcher was selected in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs and made his way to Missouri the very same season as his new head coach, the great Andy Reid. Kelce suffered a knee injury and did not record a single catch during his 2013 rookie season but the next two seasons saw him grow into a legitimate offensive threat with over 50 catches and 800+ yards each season. In 2016, Kelce recorded his first thousand yard receiving season, as he started to really come into his own. That was just a small sign of things to come.
In 2017, the Kansas City Chiefs drafted a young quarterback out of Texas Tech named Patrick Mahomes and in 2018 when Mahomes became the full time starter, everything changed. Kelce went from being a secondary option to an NFL star. He became the only tight end in NFL history to record five straight 1,000 yard seasons.
The five-time Pro Bowler, 2010 NFL all Decade Team member and Super Bowl champion has less than 30 true rookie cards. The list is very top-heavy, as he only has a handful of serial numbered, autographed or memorabilia offerings with the reaming cards being lower end in caliber.
Below we throw out a list of three tiers of Kelce cardboard worth catching.
All Decade Tier
2013 Panini National Treasures #334 Travis Kelce AU RC
This is the cream of the crop for Kelce cards. It hails from what many collectors consider the gold standard of rookie cards. It’s also one of the very few Kelce Auto (true) rookies, offering a sticker auto and a serial number to just 99 copies. You can find them on eBay but you can probably expect to pay above book value.
2013 Panini Contenders #187A Travis Kelce AU RC/(knees not visible)
There are a few variations of this card. One pictures Kelce running toward the photograph with his knees not showing. Yet the other version has Kelce looking to his right with his knees visible, which explains the ‘knees showing’ variation title. The Contenders (Playoff or Panini) product will always carry weight with collectors chasing relevant rookie cards. When you can find one, they’ll run $150-$250 for an ungraded version.
2013 Panini Spectra #194 Travis Kelce AU/99 RC
This particular Kelce rookie carries that Spectra sparkle with a lot of shine and flash that many collectors are drawn to in this day and age. The card offers an autograph, a super low number and the true rookie card designation. This one makes appearance in the bottom half of the top tier Kelce rookie cards.
TE Threat Tier
2013 Totally Certified #206 Travis Kelce AU/499 RC
This is a solid mid-level option for an autographed Travis true rookie card. It shows a picture of him in his classic red number 87 jersey with a sticker autograph and relatively serial number to 499 on the reverse of the card. With very few true rookie autos for Kelsey, this is a very nice, reasonably priced option.
2013 Panini Prizm #292 Travis Kelce RC
This is the perfect example of a Prizm card going from 0 to 60…literally. Collectors have begun to take notice of Kelce in the hobby and they are putting their money where their eBay is. This Prizm RC could have been had for a few dollars last year but now it often sells for 30 and up. It offers that classic silver shine found on all Prizm cards along with the RC logo and the word ‘Rookie’ splashed across the front big bold letters, in case you were unsure.
2013 Elite #193 Travis Kelce/899 RC
Although not an autograph, memorabilia or super limited quantity, it is a serially numbered Kelce RC and, as stated before, that means something in this case. The image shows a young Travis shows in practice gear coming off the line ready to run a crisp route. Ungraded copies can often be found for under $20 with tough, super high-end cards quite a bit more.
Cincy Tier
2013 Topps Chrome #118 Travis Kelce RC
The Topps Chrome is a long established and trusted brand in the hobby. This is a specific year where the cards don’t have a ton of value, you can pick up this Kelce for a few dollar bills. It pictures him in an Under Armour t-shirt snagging a pass in a staged photo shoot…one that led to Mahomes searching out a copy to buy for himself.
Mahomes saw that Kelce hated his rookie card and asked me to get him one 😂😂😂 https://t.co/rfgWxvXYEI pic.twitter.com/M4rhfjR99d
— Adam Lefkoe (@AdamLefkoe) December 14, 2020
2013 Crown Royale #194 Travis Kelce RC
In classic Crown Royale fashion this rookie card of the high end tight end is overflowing with foil and the now famous crown adorning the top of the card. Kelce appears in full Chiefs gear, ball in hand ready to make something happen. This card can be had for a reasonable sum of money.
2013 Select #242 Travis Kelce RC
The Select line is a tried and true one, meant to be a mid to lower end product with a lot of potential upside. This Kelce rookie shows the young tight end in full gear with a slick pic and card design. The card design is the classic Select style, with a lot of shine and nicely framed image. A Prizm-like card without a Prizm-like price.
You can check out a list of the most watched Travis Kelce trading card auctions on eBay via the list below.
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Notes: Modern Card Records; New High-End Shop; Wildlife vs Layton; UPS Theft; 49ers Collector in England
