Like many teams, the initial returns on the Kansas City Chiefs‘ draft class are mixed. On the high end, players like first-round pick Josh Simmons emerged as budding stars. On the low end, some others failed to make much of an impact in year one.
Thus far, fourth-round wide receiver Jalen Royals finds himself under the latter umbrella. With Kansas City eliminated from playoff contention, could that change?
No one is promising anything, but that answer seems to be trending toward yes.
Matt Nagy Hints at Increased Snaps for Chiefs Rookie WR Jalen Royals
Contrary to the offseason hype he generated, Royals hasn’t translated any of it to regular-season play. What caused that? Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy offered a multitude of answers.
One of them was simply the embarrassment of riches the Chiefs think they have at wideout already.
“You want to see more time from him, if possible,” Nagy said. “We’ve been in a position where, shoot, these wide receivers we have, we feel very fortunate with the guys we’ve had from the middle of the season on when Rashee [Rice] came back. Some of it’s just a numbers thing for him and it’s almost like a redshirt year, in a way.
“He’s practicing hard in practice but for him, there’s a lot of good stuff there with him. I’m excited to see what he’s going to do, whether it’s these next three games and/or the future. Yes, it’s going to give some kids to get an opportunity to maybe get some more time they wouldn’t have gotten.”
To Nagy’s point, once Rice got back from suspension in Week 7, there were plenty of cooks in the kitchen. At the top of the depth chart, Rice was joined by second-year man Xavier Worthy and veteran Marquise “Hollywood” Brown. Elsewhere, the reliable JuJu Smith-Schuster and the speedy Tyquan Thornton fell in line.
That doesn’t leave much space for a rookie, and the proof is in the snap counts. Royals has logged more special teams reps (36) than offensive ones (35) in his first year. He’s only been active for four games, failing to be thrown a single pass.
It isn’t necessarily his own fault, though.
WR Coach Connor Embree Contextualizes Royals’ Season
Wide receivers coach Connor Embree also addressed the media on Thursday afternoon. He, like Nagy, believes Royals has the right attitude. He’s approached things the right way, even in a challenging debut campaign.
Embree wants Royals to see the field more in the Chiefs’ upcoming games against the Tennessee Titans, Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders.
“Jalen, you know, he’s been working his tail off at practice,” Embree said. “Super smart kid, stays locked in at meetings. Just like you said, we’ll see these next three games if he gets an opportunity to go out there and go make some plays.”
It feels like ages ago that Royals was an Organized Team Activities (OTAs) and early training camp darling. In reality, it’s only been a handful of months. In his unofficial team entrance, an August 9 preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals, he had 3 catches on 5 targets for 14 yards.
Knee tendonitis had other plans, though, cutting Royals’ preseason short. Did that leave him behind a bit as the weeks went on? Embree says it may have played a role.
“Yeah, I think it did, personally,” Embree said. “He was having a great training camp, great preseason. He was kind of in a rhythm, him and Pat [Mahomes] were on the same page with stuff. I think it was just bad timing when all of that stuff came, too. He worked his way through it and got through it. Like I said, I really like where he’s at. He’s been working his butt off at practice and in the meeting room.”
With all of that behind him, Royals will look to make the most of whatever opportunities he earns to finish strong.
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