Just hours before their 2024 NFL season opener, the Kansas City Chiefs and tight end Noah Gray agreed to a three-year, $18 million contract extension. The deal includes a $10.1 million signing bonus, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported.
Gray, who is entering his fourth season, caught 28 passes for 305 yards and two touchdowns as a backup to Travis Kelce last season. He started 10 games for Kansas City, as the offense featured two tight end sets and played a total of 592 offensive snaps. (Gray played an additional 219 snaps on special teams.)
Chiefs general manager Brett Veach told reporters last week that the plan is to have Gray play less on special teams and give him a bigger role on offense.
“It would be good to get Noah off some of those things,” Veach said, via the Kansas City Star. “I think Noah is getting better and better, and he’s a guy we want to feature (on offense) a little bit more.”
The Chiefs’ fifth-round pick (No. 162 overall) out of Duke in 2021 was entering the final year of his rookie contract with a $3.1 million salary. In three seasons, Gray has 63 receptions for 640 yards and four touchdowns.
With Kelce signed for one more season through 2025 and nearing the end of his likely Hall of Fame career, signing Gray to an extension would seem to set the team up for the future at tight end after Kelce. If Kelce plays out his contract, Gray would be signed for the next two seasons.
Gray is the second player from Kansas City’s 2021 draft class to agree to an extension. Two weeks ago, center Creed Humphrey agreed to a four-year, $72 million extension that made him the highest-paid player at his position in the NFL.
