Getty Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach has been credited with the NFL's "sneaky signing of the week."
The Kansas City Chiefs had a relatively quiet week in free agency, but you could argue that when GM Brett Veach did strike, he hit on areas of need.
Justin Reid has the look of an ascending talent that could fill the void left by Tyrann Mathieu. KC also bolstered the right tackle position with Geron Christian, something that was necessary this spring. Of course, key free agents also returned and lastly, the Chiefs were able to secure a third playmaker for Patrick Mahomes.
Enter JuJu Smith-Schuster, who well-respected NFL columnist Peter King just labeled his “sneaky signing of the week.”
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Smith-Schuster Could Rebuild WR Status in KC
During his March 21 edition of “Football Morning in America,” King explained why the Smith-Schuster pickup was the sneakiest of a very busy week in the NFL. He wrote:
Smith-Schuster is 25, he’ll have two huge weapons (Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce) to draw attention from him, he’ll benefit from the play never being over with Patrick Mahomes and he’ll benefit from a coach who knows how to get his best players the ball. This is my personal favorite note: in Smith-Schuster’s two 16-game seasons in Pittsburgh, he averaged 104 catches, 1,128 yards and eight TDs. With the proviso that he has to stay healthy, if Smith-Schuster plays 15 games, this will be a brilliant signing by Kansas City.
Just a few short years ago, fans forget that many saw Smith-Schuster as a rising superstar that had surpassed Antonio Brown in Pittsburgh. Then after various injuries, it’s almost like nobody was willing to take a chance on the former Steeler this offseason.
The Chiefs got him at a bargain of $2.49 million guaranteed, with max incentives up to $10.75 million according to NFL Network insider Mike Garafolo.
You hope that the wide receiver has a major resurgence in 2022, but the fact is that there’s very little riding on it if he doesn’t. That makes this move by Veach even sneakier.
To reiterate a quote from King: “If Smith-Schuster plays 15 games, this will be a brilliant signing by Kansas City.” I’ll go one further — if things go well, the fallen star could be in the conversation for comeback player of the year.
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JuJu Is ‘Here to Win’
During his introductory press conference with the Chiefs, Smith-Schuster noted that “KC has been on me for the past two years.” He also mentioned picture messages from Andy Reid of the Lombardi Trophy, agreeing with the head coach’s subtle sentiment.
“For me, I made the decision to come here to win,” Smith-Schuster voiced. “I’m all about winning. I’m all about what I can do to help the team and produce. This year you’ll see that. You’ll see that obviously, they have Tyreek [Hill], Travis [Kelce] and Mecole [Hardman], and all those guys, they’ll still make their plays. And the plays that I do get, I’ll want to make them too. Like I said, I’m here to win.”
The wide receiver also admitted that Mahomes was “a big part of the process.” Smith-Schuster continued: “You go into free agency, and you find out who’s going to be throwing you the ball next year. It came down to Pat, and I’m excited. I’m happy with my decision.”
Finally, the ex-Steeler described how his game should complement the others.
“I’m a different type of guy — I’m a little bit more built,” he stated. “You’ve got [Hill] and [Hardman], speedster guys who can run down the field. I’m the type of guy, great hands — a little bit like [Kelce] — great hands, big dude that can run and block, physical blocking in the run game. There’s so much I can do to help this team.”