It doesn’t take too long of a trip in the NFL’s version of the Wayback Machine to find a diminished version of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ offense. Due to a slew of injuries, underwhelming supporting talent and lackluster execution, the reigning AFC champions seemed to be operating on borrowed time a season ago.
This offseason, however, the tides are turning. Kansas City is finally healthy at the receiver spot, and tight end Travis Kelce is laser-focused ahead of another grueling season. As a result, quarterback Patrick Mahomes could be due for a statistical rebound. A couple of specific factors figure to impact that floor and ceiling.
One prominent NFL analyst and a former Chiefs player seem to agree. On a recent episode of “Pushing the Pile,” Mike Renner and longtime NFL offensive lineman Kyle Long pitted the Kansas City receiving corps – Kelce included – against the rest of the league. It’s a B-tier slotting with some wiggle room for an eventual promotion.
Health Is Major Swing Factor for Chiefs’ 2025 Receiving Weapons
Less than 12 months ago, the Chiefs had a pair of wrenches thrown in their plans at wideout. First, Marquise “Hollywood” Brown went down in the preseason opener with a sternoclavicular injury. Less than a full month into the regular season, Rashee Rice suffered a season-ending knee injury. That placed an unfair amount of pressure on Kelce, as well as then-rookie Xavier Worthy, to keep the offense afloat.
The results were predictably a letdown. Renner, however, has high hopes for everyone if they can experience better luck on the health front in 2025-26.
“I have the Chiefs in this tier with Rashee Rice, Hollywood Brown, Xavier Worthy, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Jalen Royals,” Renner said. “We never got to see it fully healthy last year – hopefully we do this year. And then, obviously, Travis Kelce at tight end.”
All of Kansas City’s pieces being available would have a ripple effect. If Rice is back his old self, the No. 1 option is in place. Should Brown benefit from a full offseason, he’ll hit the ground running and look more comfortable. In turn, Worthy won’t be asked to do too much and Kelce can be preserved during the regular season. It’s a win-win for everyone involved.
Development of Xavier Worthy Could See Chiefs Leap to A-Tier Arsenal
That conglomerate of weapons simply being on the field may not be enough. As Long notes, there are tangible improvements that certain players can make. Worthy, in particular, might be the X factor that either limits or raises the Chiefs’ effectiveness.
Luckily for Kansas City, he was a few good breaks from having a truly excellent rookie season.
“For the Chiefs, Rashee Rice was playing like a true No. 1 before he got hurt,” Long said. “Hollywood Brown, obviously, has some traits that people love to see at the receiver position. Xavier Worthy, if he can just slow down a little bit, OK? So many of those explosive plays, he was just stepping out of bounds last year. Get him to figure out some spatial awareness, and you’re looking at maybe an A-tier receiving group.”
The proof is in the pudding. From Weeks 1-10, Worthy hauled in just 20 of his 43 targets (a 46.5% rate) for 246 yards and three touchdowns. In his final seven regular-season games, those numbers spiked to 39 receptions on 55 targets (70.9%) and 392 yards with three additional receiving scores. Perhaps most impressive was the first-round pick’s Super Bowl LIX performance, where he had 157 yards and two touchdowns.
Any sort of second-year progression from Worthy will help the Chiefs. If they stay healthy elsewhere, this may not be a B-level group for long.
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