The Kansas City Chiefs remain unbeaten after defeating the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6.
It wasn’t pretty, but Kansas City won comfortably when it was all said and done. However, with back-to-back road games against the Seattle Seahawks and Denver Broncos on the horizon, the Chiefs’ offense has plenty of areas it needs to sharpen up in.
Kansas City Chiefs Didn’t Get Young WRs Involved Much vs. Chargers
With Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton out with injuries, the Chiefs had a golden opportunity to get some of their young and unproven wide receivers more involved.
To make things even sweeter, the Chargers were without starting safety Derwin James and cornerback Donte Jackson. However, as ESPN’s Nate Taylor pointed out, Kansas City relied heavily on veteran pass catchers Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy.
“In his first game this season without Rashee Rice (right hamstring) and Tyquan Thornton (on IR after a dislocated left ankle), Patrick Mahomes’ statistics looked pretty normal — 272 yards on 23-of-30 pass attempts. But Mahomes relied heavily on tight end Travis Kelce, who played through a right ankle injury, and receiver Xavier Worthy, who led the team with 73 yards. Rookie Cyrus Allen had the second-most receiving yards, finishing with 27, which included a 23-yard catch in the fourth quarter. The Chiefs will likely need more production next week against a better opponent in the Seahawks.”
Chiefs Must Commit More to Developing WRs
One of the biggest obstacles that has held Kansas City’s offense back over the past few years is the lack of development of its wide receivers. Rice and Worthy have had good stretches of play during their careers, but have also been very inconsistent. Thornton was coming along nicely before getting injured, but was mostly a deep threat.
The Chiefs have to find out what they have in second-year receiver Jalen Royals and rookie Cyrus Allen, even if it means going through some growing pains. A matchup against the winless Chargers, who were also decimated by injuries, was the perfect chance to do so. However, they combined for just four receptions on six targets.
Leaning heavily on the 37-year-old Kelce, who had to battle through an ankle injury for most of the game against the Chargers, may not be sustainable. Rice’s eventual return will provide a boost, but he has been injury prone throughout his career. If the young receivers continue to not be given many opportunities, the position will remain a weakness.
Chiefs Criticized for Leaning on the Same Old Formula Despite Win Over Chargers