NFL Player News

Kelce signed a five-year, $46 million extension with the Chiefs on Friday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports.

The Chiefs made Kelce the second-highest paid tight end in the league, with $20.5 million of the extension guaranteed. The deal locks him up through 2021. Kelce was the Chiefs' second-leading receiver in 2015 with 72 receptions for 875 yards and five touchdowns.

Ertz has signed a five-year contract extension with the Eagles, The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Ertz's new deal will reportedly make him the NFL's fourth highest paid tight end, and keep him with the Eagles through 2021. At 25 years old, Ertz set new career-highs with 75 catches (on 112 targets) for 853 yards this season, when he also scored two touchdowns.

Bell finished his rookie campaign with 15 receptions (24 targets) for 186 yards.

Bell was buried on the depth chart early in the season, but a combination of Vernon Davis' departure and a losing season allowed San Francisco to showcase their fourth-round draft pick down the stretch. He responded by eclipsing 40 yards in three of the 49ers' last six games. Bell is still considered a project, so we may not see his full potential next season, but he should see more targets in 2016.

Graham (knee) will return to the Seahawks next season, according to general manager John Schneider, NFL.com reports.

Graham's questionable fit with the Seahawks resulted in sub-par numbers of 48 catches for 605 yards and only two touchdowns prior to his season-ending knee injury in November. While Seattle's offense really kicked into gear following Graham's injury, the tight end remains in the team's plans going forward, according to Schneider. Knowing that, it'll be worthwhile to track Graham's progress within the offense once he returns healthy ahead of next season.

Head coach Pete Carroll relayed Monday that Graham has ditched crutches and continues to rehab his right knee in Florida, according to Liz Mathews of 710 ESPN Seattle.

Graham's first season with the Seahawks was abbreviated due to a torn patellar tendon, which he suffered on Nov. 29. Struggling to find consistency with the shiny new toy in town, he notched 48 catches (on 74 targets) for 605 yards and two touchdowns in 11 games. With Graham and Marshawn Lynch out due to injury down the stretch, most of the offensive burden was placed on Russell Wilson's shoulders, and he was up to the task, accounting for 20 passing touchdowns and another on the ground over the final seven contests (including playoffs). Although Carroll expects Graham to fulfill the third year of his current contract in 2016, it'll be interesting to see how the tight end is integrated into a scheme that could be more vertical-based if Lynch isn't retained.

James had 22 yards on one catch in Pittsburgh's loss to Denver on Sunday.

James played in just eight games this season, catching eight of 11 targets for 56 yards and a touchdown. While he made the most of his opportunities in 2015, James played just 16.8 percent of the Steelers' offensive snaps, compared to 86.0 percent for Heath Miller and 22.6 percent for Matt Spaeth. A better receiver than Spaeth, Jones' fantasy production is still limited as long as a healthy Miller is ahead of him on the depth chart.

Kelce secured six of nine targets for 23 yards in Saturday's 27-20 divisional round loss to the Patriots.

The third-year pro simply could not get downfield, as the Patriots clearly focused on containing one of the Chiefs' top passing-game weapons. Kelce's minuscule 3.8 yards per catch was easily his lowest of the season, and outside of a game-high 13-yard reception, he only managed 10 yards on his five other catches. Despite the mediocre conclusion to the season, Kelce saw increases in his catches (72), yards (875) and targets (100) from a year ago, and will undoubtedly be a focal point of the Kansas City passing game in 2016.

Quarless (knee) was placed on season-ending injured reserve Friday.

Quarless missed the vast majority of this season due to a knee issue, which required fluid draining earlier this week. With concerns over his health and effectiveness going forward, the Packers decided to shut Quarless down for the year, opening the door for Justin Perillo to serve as Richard Rodgers' main backup at tight end ahead of Saturday's playoff game in Arizona.

Quarless (knee) will be placed on injured reserve by the Packers, the ESPN reports.

Quarless posted on Instagram on Thursday that his "season has come to an end not by my choice," and he's expected to be placed on injured reserve at some point Friday. Quarless reportedly had fluid drained from his knee recently, an issue that stems back to an early-season injury that landed him on the injured reserve/designated to return list after Week 3. The sixth-year tight end was a limited participant in practice both Wednesday and Thursday, but the Packers were apparently not convinced about his health and will likely hand his roster spot to another receiver or tight end for the team's NFC divisional round game against the Cardinals on Saturday. Quarless will enter free agency in the offseason, and with Richard Rodgers now taking over the primary tight end role for the Packers, it's certainly possible Quarless won't be wearing green and gold next season.

Johnson finished the 2015 season with only one reception for four yards and does not figure to be much of a factor in 2016 either.

Johnson was signed before the 2014 season as a blocking tight end and fullback, and he could very well return to a similar role in 2016, but he just does not touch the ball on offense at all.