What should the Chiefs do with their WR room?
With the preseason over, I examine the most interesting group on KC's roster
One of the most significant and interesting storylines of this offseason for the Kansas City Chiefs has been their wide receiver room. Following a borderline catastrophic 2023 at that position (which was so bad it took me multiple paragraphs to summarize all the times I wrote about how bad it was), Brett Veach and Andy Reid revamped the position with their most significant free agency signing (Hollywood Brown) and a first-round draft pick (Xavier Worthy).
In addition to bringing in two new guys who are clearly in line to receive the majority of the snaps next to Rashee Rice, Veach also released (playoffs legend) Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who was eventually signed by the Buffalo Bills. Considering MVS took more snaps at WR than any other player besides Rice last season, it’s safe to say that there’s been a rather significant shakeup.
In addition to the changes at the top, there has been a lot of conversation about the bottom (and middle) of the WR group. There are a lot of opinions as to who should make the cut and who shouldn’t in a list that is extensive with familiar names, guys who have previously seen significant playing time, and/or guys who are fan favorites.
Here’s a list of the guys currently on the Chiefs roster at WR who have been at least talked about as making the roster (in reverse alphabetical order):
Xavier Worthy, Justin Watson, Montrell Washington, Kadarius Toney, Justyn Ross, Nikko Remigio, Cornell Powell, Skyy Moore, Mecole Hardman, Hollywood Brown
I may be a bit generous throwing Powell/Washington in there, but I’ve had enough people ask me about them this offseason (even as just a throwaway question) that I think they’re at least worth tossing his name out there for purposes of what we’re doing today. Which is trying to figure out what I would do with the roster if I were Veach and Reid, and then trying to figure out what the Chiefs are most likely to do.
So here’s what I want to do. First, I’m going to go through what my WR group would look like if I were Reid/Veach, assuming they’re going to carry seven wide receivers, and why I’d go that route. Then I’ll walk through what I think the Chiefs are most likely to do. And no, the two things are not the same. Because in my world, contract and draft capital don’t really factor in that much. Whereas in the NFL? It matters, arguably more than it should.
Let’s talk about the Chiefs WR’s and the final 53.