Getty Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Mecole Hardman represents one of the only holdovers in the room.
The Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver room has been the talk of the offseason — from JuJu Smith-Schuster joining the organization to the Tyreek Hill trade and the massive overhaul of the unit.
Needless to say, the last few months have been a trip filled with good moments and bad. Many within the national media may not be as high on the Chiefs in 2022 without Hill but so long as Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid are still around, others know better than to write KC off.
One bullish supporter of the Chiefs’ continued NFL success appears to be former No. 2 overall pick, Robert Griffin III, who had a lot to say about Mahomes’ pass-catchers on Twitter.
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RG3: ‘Chiefs Are Deeper at WR Than Ever’
Now working for ESPN as a football analyst, the quarterback known as “RG3” made a bold proclamation about the Chiefs WR corps on June 21.
The @Chiefs are DEEPER AT WR THAN EVER. Tyreek Hills don’t grow on trees so after he moved to Miami, the Chiefs replaced Tyreek with DEPTH. Added Ju Ju, MVS, Skyy Moore and have Josh Gordon, Corey Coleman and Justyn Ross fighting to be WR 5-6. CHEMISTRY will be key, not talent.
“The Chiefs are DEEPER AT WR THAN EVER,” Griffin voiced. “Tyreek Hills don’t grow on trees so after he moved to Miami, the Chiefs replaced Tyreek with DEPTH. Added JuJu, MVS, Skyy Moore and have Josh Gordon, Corey Coleman and Justyn Ross fighting to be WR 5-6. CHEMISTRY will be key, not talent.”
It was a nice vote of confidence from the analyst but he may have actually shortchanged KC in this tweet — we’ll blame the character count, not RG3. The Kansas City veteran of this unit, Mecole Hardman, is totally snubbed by Griffin and another spring standout wasn’t mentioned either.
That is, until “Good Morning Football” co-host Peter Schrager got involved.
@RGIII @ImVinDieselsSon @Chiefs Watson, 84. He’s the one to watch.
“[Justin] Watson, [#]84. He’s the one to watch,” Schrager replied. Actor and diehard Chiefs fan Eric Stonestreet concurred, commenting: “[Plugged] in I see Pete.”
@PSchrags @RGIII @ImVinDieselsSon @Chiefs 🔌’d in I see Pete.
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You Said It, RG3!
Whether Griffin has the correct bubble candidates or not is up for debate but the fact still remains, this wide receiver depth is unreal and the former quarterback is on the ball with his overall point.
Devon Clements of Heavy on Chiefs wrote an article this morning noting that former All-Pro Josh Gordon was recently named as a projected cut and it’s not as hard to believe as it seems. The story came from an Adam Teicher article on ESPN, where the veteran beat reporter predicted that only five wideouts would make the 53-man roster.
To me, that feels a little low in 2022. Unless a clear five emerge, you might see Coach Reid hoard his depth a bit here and bide his time until Mahomes’ starting weapons reveal themselves. Six is a more realistic roster number for this position if things remain somewhat even after training camp.
That leaves a WR corps that will look like something along the lines of:
- Roster locks- Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Moore.
- Should make the roster- Hardman.
- Bubble candidates with hype- Ross, Gordon, Watson, Coleman.
- Lesser-known bubble candidates- Daurice Fountain, Cornell Powell, Omar Bayless.
- Unlikely/practice squad potential- Gary Jennings, Aaron Parker, Mathew Sexton (injured reserve).
The Latest Heading Into Training Camp
In case you missed it, this group really came to play over the spring sessions. The star of the show was probably Valdes-Scantling, who seemed to develop the earliest chemistry with Mahomes — although Smith-Schuster was not far behind.
Hampered by hamstring issues, Moore and Hardman lost some ground but should have no problem working their way into this rotation during the summer months.
Watson, Powell and Bayless also appeared to flash in moments, but it will be tougher for these three to earn a roster spot if they cannot remain consistent. The priority undrafted rookie, Ross, was another intriguing piece. His spring was mixed, including early rust and a minor injury later on, but also featured a couple of highlight-reel catches when he was on the field.
I did not hear the names of special teams ace Fountain (also dealt with injury), Coleman or Gordon as much. Reid talked up the latter once or twice, but it felt like motivational coach-speak rather than anything significant.