The Kansas City Chiefs are expected to seek upgrades for their wide receiving corps before next week’s NFL trade deadline, with one nine-year NFL veteran as a potential target.
The Athletic broke down the 50 most likely trade candidates before the deadline, linking the Chiefs to several wide receiver additions. The report noted that veteran Calvin Ridley could be an especially attractive trade target given his history of production and relatively low cost.
Chiefs Trade Rumors: Calvin Ridley Could Boost Offense
The report noted that the 31-year-old Ridley took a pay cut to stay with the Tennessee Titans this season and has a cap hit of $3 million this year. With the Titans sinking to the bottom of the AFC and likely looking to build assets for a rebuild, Ridley could be a strong trade candidate for Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City offense.
“The Tennessee offense has mostly struggled under coordinator Brian Daboll, though the unit has improved over the past three weeks,” the report noted. “Ridley had only six catches on 13 targets through the first eight weeks of the season. He has been out-snapped by rookie Carnell Tate, free-agent addition Wan’Dale Robinson and second-year receiver Elic Ayomanor.”
Ridley has a strong history of production since coming into the NFL in 2018, making 411 career receptions for 5,769 yards and 40 touchdowns.
The report noted that Ridley doesn’t have any guaranteed money on his contract after this season, which would give the Chiefs flexibility for the future and a potential one-year addition to boost their hopes of returning to the Super Bowl.
“There is some meat on the bone with Ridley,” the report noted. “The route running and releases are still NFL quality. Ridley could still make an impact with better quarterback play and overall offensive infrastructure.”
Patrick Mahomes Addresses Offensive Needs
The Chiefs took a big blow when deep threat wide receiver Tyquan Thornton suffered a dislocated ankle, an injury expected to keep him out through the rest of the regular season. Mahomes admitted that the team misses that element with Thornton off the field, suggesting they may need to make another addition to account for the loss.
“Obviously, you miss Tyquan’s speed and how he’s able to track the ball downfield. … Some of the downfield stuff is more about the teams that we’ve faced,” Mahomes said, per Charles Goldman of A to Z Sports. “Obviously, we’ve got to get back to that.”
The Chiefs have been linked to other potential wide receiver trade targets, including Josh Downs of the Indianapolis Colts and Brian Thomas Jr. from the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Chiefs have also been linked to veteran Tyreek Hill, who is recovering from a season-ending knee injury and will be a free agent. Hill could be a more attractive target given the Chiefs wouldn’t need to give up any draft assets to land him and his price could be lower given the major injury he suffered last year.
Chiefs Predicted to Add 5,800-Yard WR as New Patrick Mahomes Target