KC Chiefs: Five free agent wide receivers who could interest Brett Veach
By Josh Fann
The K.C. Chiefs have plenty of positions to address this offseason and one of those is wide receiver. Both Sammy Watkins and Demarcus Robinson will be free agents, and there’s a good chance the team moves on from both leaving Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman, and Byron Pringle (assuming he comes back) as your top three.
Hill is a lock at WR1 but the rest after that is shaky. Mecole Hardman will have his plays but leaves a lot to be desired and there are concerns that he won’t be able to fill the WR2 role. Lastly, Byron Pringle is a cool story, but he can’t be in the conversation for WR 2 or 3 in an ideal world.
With that being said, this year’s free agent class offers plenty of wide receivers at a potentially fair price who can help the Chiefs bolster their wide receiver corps and give Patrick Mahomes more weapons to work with as general manager Brett Veach always promised he would try to do.
Here are five free agent wide receivers who could pique the Chiefs’ interest.
Marvin Jones Jr.
This signing would be an absolute best-case scenario for the Chiefs if Jones agrees to the right price and is serious about winning like he has stated in the past. If the Chiefs want to make a splash, contrary to what Brett Veach said in his recent Zoom press conference regarding wide receivers, Jones is a perfect fit.
In 2020, Jones recorded 978 yards and 9 TDs on 76 catches. That’s the stat line of an ideal No. 2 wide receiver. Not only is Jones productive, but he is dependable unlike Sammy Watkins as he played 16 games last season. The best thing about Jones is that he would provide a big-bodied red zone threat that the Chiefs haven’t had in a long time as Jones stands in at 6’2″, 200 lbs. and still has the speed to go with it.
Corey Davis
Corey Davis is a signing that would be similar to Jones. Davis has great size at 6’3″, 210 lbs. and he was just short of having a thousand yard season in 2020 with 984 receiving yards and 5 TDs on just 65 catches. Davis also replicates a lot of what Sammy Watkins did in Kansas City with his route running and physicality, but Davis would also have to be willing to sign below market value with Kansas City—not just because of the cap situation, but because Davis has had a roller coaster career so far.
As a rookie in 2017, Davis only had 375 yards and was in and out with injury. In 2018, he had a solid year with 891 yards but only caught 65 of his 112 targets. 2019, he was back down to 601 yards and then he had this past season which we already mentioned. Is Davis really on the right track or did he just show out because it was a contract year? Always hard to tell.
A.J. Green
The former Bengals Pro Bowler will officially be a free agent this offseason, and while many fans have pushed the idea of the Chiefs somehow acquiring Green for a while, Green’s days of being a legitimate threat may be over. He’s seen a steady decline in production over the past few years and didn’t even play in 2019. However, the Bengals organization may not have been the best environment for Green as of recently, as he is not at the point of his career where he wants to play for a rebuilding team. Maybe landing in Kansas City will rejuvenate him if he wants to come over and chase a ring.