The Kansas City Chiefs continue to break down at wide receiver. In one practice on Saturday, rookie sensation Cyrus Allen went down with a leg injury, and Xavier Worthy hurt his shoulder again. Both are being evaluated as the Chiefs’ receiving room keeps shrinking.
It was a bad day in St. Joe today as a pair of potential starters went down with injuries; one could be season-ending. Fifth-round pick Cyrus Allen was asked to play special teams today, and a collision with cornerback Kalim forced him to the sideline.
Making things worse, he could not put any weight on his leg and had to be put in a cart by two trainers. As he drove up the hill, his head was buried underneath his jersey, and that was an ominous sign this could be an ACL or season-ending injury.
Wide Receiver Xavier Worthy reinjured his shoulder, something that kept him out of games last season and forced offseason surgery to correct; his evaluation process is ongoing. With these injuries, the Chiefs don’t have many weapons for Patrick Mahomes.
Rashee Rice has not looked good thus far in camp, and that means Tyquan Thornton could be the team’s best wide receiver. After that, the talent level falls off and is untested. The Chiefs had hoped to add a veteran to the mix, but thus far they’ve been inclined to wait on Tryeek Hill, who won’t be NFL-ready until mid to late October.
The offense was already a question mark, and with the absence of offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy for a personal matter, I don’t see how the Chiefs can adjust their offense any further.
Some veteran options are still unsigned, most notably Keenan Allen and Stephon Diggs, but neither wants to sign until training camps are over. General Manager Brett Veach might have to part with draft capital to find a top-shelf receiver.
The Arizona Cardinals were shopping former first-round draft pick Marvin Harrison Jr., who has also had a rough camp, near the NFL Draft, but no team was willing to part with the picks Arizona wanted in return.
If they trade Harrison, the organization would have to admit the mistake they made drafting him two years ago. Still, it’s possible the Chiefs could pull off a deal, but at what price?
For my money, Diggs makes the best choice, but he’s going to want somewhere in the neighborhood of $8 million to sign a one-year deal with Kansas City. The former Buffalo Bill and New England Patriot also comes with some baggage from a pair of incidents, none of which he was charged with a crime for, making his addition a bit tricky.
The Chiefs tried to acquire Allen a couple of years ago before he was dealt to the Chicago Bears. The 34-year-old receiver was very productive with the Chargers last season, leading the team with 81 receptions.
Deebo Samuel just re-signed with the San Francisco 49ers and would have been a perfect fit for the Chiefs’ wide-open offense. Now Andy Reid has to adjust the meter again because the best receiver on the roster is the oldest player, Travis Kelce.
Yet, losing Allen at this stage, considering the rapport he built with Mahomes from the first OTA practice through the first week of practice, can’t be replaced.
