The Kansas City Chiefs were encouraged by the preseason game of rookie receiver Xavier Worthy, who set a scouting combine record of 4.21 seconds in the 40-yard dash. In limited playing time, Worthy caught a 39-yard pass from quarterback Patrick Mahomes and a 22-yard touchdown from backup Carson Wentz in a game against the Detroit Lions.
The Chiefs were just as excited about another play by Worthy in this game that drew less attention. Worth ran a deep route and – because of his speed – the Lions sent three defenders to cover, leaving the middle of the field open.
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That’s when another Chiefs wide receiver, Justin Watson, caught a pass for a 20-yard gain. Degnu not only did his work, but also created for others.
“Xavier used all that speed to take down three guys and I found this spot right under him,” Watson said. “I’m usually the guy who takes the lead (on defense). It was nice to be the guy who gets to catch.” That’s when another Chiefs receiver, Justin Watson, caught a pass for a 20-yard gain. Degnu not only did his work, but created for others. “Xavier used all that speed to take down three guys and I found this spot right under him,” Watson said. “I’m usually the guy who catches (on defense). It was nice to be the guy who could catch.” The Chiefs added another speedy receiver this offseason in free agent Marquise Brown, though he did not play in the season opener against the Baltimore Ravens (8:20 p.m. ET Thursday, NBC) after dislocating his shoulder in the pre-season. They also kept another deep threat at receiver in Mecole Hardman, giving the Chiefs and Mahomes three extremely quick options.
“We have three guys who are all fast and can take over the defense, so they don’t know exactly who’s going to be on each play,” Watson said. “And you have to respect everyone who goes out on the field. If you don’t, we will take your lead.”
The Chiefs have valued speed at receiver since Andy Reid took over as coach in 2013, but especially since Mahomes became their starting quarterback in 2018. They drafted Tyreek Hill in 2016, signed Sammy Watkins in 2018 and wrote Hardman the following year.
The Chiefs call this group of receivers the Zoom Legion. But Hardman said this year’s group is faster. “It was just me and Tyreek,” Hardman said. “Sammy was also quite explosive. But in terms of speed, I think this group is probably a little faster. We have a few more, like three or four that could work.”
The Chiefs lacked speed from last year’s depth. Hill and Watkins left, and Hardman started the season with the New York Jets. He returned midway through the season, playing six regular season games for the Chiefs.
Opponents thought the Chiefs had no one to test deep, which is one reason why they struggled to get big passes like never before with Mahomes at quarterback. The Chiefs knew they had to change, so they not only signed Brown and drafted Worthy, but also signed Hardman, who was a free agent.
Worthy and Brown, at running back, should be on the roster for most of the snaps. Hardman should also get playing time while serving as speed insurance. “It’s a quarterback’s league and it’s a fast game,” general manager Brett Veach said. “The faster you are on the field, the more difficult it is for defenses to pick up different elements of the game.
“We have some guys right now that I think can question the defense.” That’s nice in theory, but the Chiefs were happy to see things go that way against the Lions. Mahomes made a point in training camp to throw to Worthy as he could.
They had their share of complete passes, but it didn’t always work like it did against the Lions. “Once you hit him over the top with that speed, it helps open up the whole football field,” Mahomes said. “It’s going to help everybody in the whole offense to have him, to have (Brown), that Rashee (Rice) can be released. That opens up the whole offense, which is something that I think is going to be important for us this year.”
The Chiefs were so determined to get Worthy the ball that they called for a deep post on him in their first preseason game in a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars pressured Mahomes and he got sacked early, throwing Brown on the play where he was injured. But that was always part of the model that the Chiefs created, to put the idea in the mind of their opponents that they had this deep threat, and did not hesitate to use it.
“Pat just wants to test me, see if I’m ready,” Worthy said of his training camp and preseason activities. Worthy did not play much in the pre-season, only 23 appearances. He, like Mahomes and most offensive linemen, was largely saved for the regular season.
But the things he was able to accomplish in limited playing time, including adjusting his kick route against the Lions, the Chiefs plan to see more of him against the Ravens and beyond.
“He’s lightning fast, and so to see him process the game quickly and let him play at that speed was really cool to watch,” Watson said. “It’s good to see him make smart decisions on that shot, realize he wasn’t safe in the middle of the field, give a little stutter shot and then take the field.”