Wide receiver Marcus Kemp has re-signed with the Chiefs.
The Kansas City Chiefs have decided to give Marcus Kemp another chance to make the team after allowing him to explore free agency last March. Kemp has re-signed with the team, per Matt Derrick of Chiefs Digest.
"I'm so glad that he's back now cause he was playing the best football he's played since we've had him here last year" - Andy Reid on Marcus Kemp #Chiefs
— Ron Kopp Jr. (@Ron_Kopp) August 19, 2020
Kemp was a nice find as a rookie free agent out of Hawaii, signed after he went unselected in the 2017 NFL Draft. The wide receiver impressed enough in the preseason to make the active roster, and then subsequently shot up the depth chart to earn playing time on special teams. He appeared in every single game for the Chiefs in 2018.
Unfortunately for Kemp, he was injured last preseason and placed on injured reserve. The Chiefs then decided to move on in March and were able to restructure and re-sign Sammy Watkins and Demarcus Robinson, respectively, which kept the wideout room quite full heading into the preseason.
The Chiefs brought back Kemp for a tryout on Tuesday along with a pair of defensive backs, and clearly they like what they saw enough to sign him again.
Kemp just turned 25 and will already be familiar with the coaching staff and Andy Reid‘s offense. That gives him a leg up on the competition for any final roster spots—e.g. those who will be special teams performers. Byron Pringle, Jody Fortson, and Gehrig Dieter are the names most commonly linked with the competition for the final wide receiver spot on the depth chart. Other hopefuls include Jackson Barton, Aleva Hifo, Maurice Ffrench, Kalija Lipscomb, Andre Baccellia, and Justice Shelton-Mosely.