Santonio Holmes Worked Out With KC, Still Isn’t A Chief

A report came out over the weekend former New York Jets, Chicago Bears, and Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Santonio Holmes visited Kansas City to workout with the team.

This report came from Ian Rapoport.

Holmes played nine games for the Bears, catching only eight passes for 67 yards. He only had one catch after week three. It has been quite some time since Holmes was a productive receiver, which seemed to end around the time he caught the game-winning touchdown pass in Super Bowl XLII.

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It is true the Chiefs have a bunch of issues at wide receiver. Donnie Avery and A.J. Jenkins are both hurt, and neither one was producing much even when they were healthy. There are some promising young receivers in Junior Hemingway and Albert Wilson, but none of them have shown enough to unseat Avery or Jenkins on the depth chart. That cannot be a good sign for their current level of play.

Then there is the absolutely not overstated stat that Kansas City receivers have yet to catch a touchdown pass. Sure, sure, that may be a mostly meaningless anecdote but it would be nice if that would go away from the narrative for a little while.

One would imagine Holmes would be an option for the Chiefs if it is determined Avery cannot return to action this season. Kansas City has  a 10 day window between the Thursday night game against the Oakland Raiders and their home match-up against the Denver Broncos that could be an opportunity to bring a receiver in. One would think if Holmes is going to sign with KC it would be during that period of time.

Should Holmes sign one would imagine he wouldn’t be very effective at the beginning. Developing chemistry with Alex Smith plus trying to learn and apply Andy Reid’s playbook will take some time. But maybe Holmes can be useful in certain packages where the Chiefs really do not have a receiver who can be effective in those situations – namely the red zone and down the field.

Ultimately Holmes isn’t the kind of long-term solution the Chiefs need at wide receiver. Those questions will have to be addressed in the offseason.