Getty Arrowhead Stadium.
Among the positions the Kansas City Chiefs needed to address during the 2022 NFL Draft was wide receiver.
After trading away Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins, Kansas City re-stocked the receiver room by signing JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. But the Chiefs still needed to add a young playmaker on a rookie deal to ensure the offense had a long-term plan at wideout that wasn’t going to break the bank.
That’s why the defending AFC West champions drafted Skyy Moore with the 54th overall pick in this year’s draft. Moore can provide a spark for Kansas City’s offense in numerous ways, and the rookie claims he can even fill Tyreek Hill’s role, albeit with his own twist.
But how productive should we expect Moore to be during his rookie year? Productive enough to be the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, according to CBS Sports.
The latest Chiefs news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Chiefs newsletter here!
CBS Ranks Moore as Top ROY Candidate
Chris Trapasso of CBS Sports ranked the 2022 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year candidates on May 19, and No. 1 in his rankings was none other than Skyy Moore.
“I’ve been a Moore admirer for months, Trapasso wrote. “Fell in love with the traits he showcased on film, and my grading system spit out a mid first-round grade on him. Now, he lands in Kansas City with Patrick Mahomes throwing him the football in Andy Reid and Eric Bieniemy’s offense. How in the world could I back away from advocating for Moore now?”
The entire top 10 rankings are:
- WR Skyy Moore, KC
- WR Treylon Burks, TEN
- QB Kenny Pickett, PIT
- WR Garrett Wilson, NYJ
- RB Breece Hall, NYJ
- WR Drake London, ATL
- RB James Cook, BUF
- WR Chris Olave, NO
- WR George Pickens, PIT
- WR Jameson Williams, DET
What Are Chiefs Getting in Moore?
During the 2021 season, Moore accumulated 95 receptions for 1,292 yards and 10 touchdowns, according to Sports Reference. Although Moore was playing in the MAC, which doesn’t represent the strongest competition college football has to offer, there is a lot on tape to like about Moore, which was echoed by draft analysts leading up to the draft.
“Moore is an undersized wideout (5-10, 195) with excellent quickness, play strength and route polish. He split his time between lining up outside and in the slot for WMU. He is very sudden in his release and doesn’t waste any steps at the top of routes,” NFL Media draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah wrote of Moore, who he ranked No. 44 in his top 50 prospects rankings 3.0 on March 28.
“He attacks the leverage of cornerbacks and creates a lot of separation out of the break point. He has strong hands to attack the ball and he’s very tough/sturdy after the catch. Moore bounces off tacklers on quick hitters and jet sweeps. He has excellent top speed when he gets in the open field. Overall, the lack of ideal size is the only knock on Moore. He should emerge as a dangerous playmaker very early in his career.”
Skyy Moore … let’s watch some tape. t.co/FtuQG3PNbh
While Moore has a ways to go before he becomes a player of Tyreek Hill’s caliber, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was in favor of the selection of Moore on Day 2.
“Pat [Mahomes] was happy,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told NFL Network on April 30 regarding when Kansas City drafted Moore, via Pro Football Talk. “Pat called right away and was thanking Brett [Veach]. And he and I got to talk a little shop about how we can work him in and get him going. So I know Pat’s excited about it.”