Justyn Ross has to know what's at stake. He's been here before, and he knows he might not be here again. Now the only question is what will be do with the opportunity in front of him.
The Kansas City Chiefs announced that they were elevating Ross, a third-year wide receiver, from the team's practice squad in order to bolster the position heading into a primetime matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday Night Football.
For a player like Ross, even the chance to play under the bright lights at Arrowhead in front of a national television audience is special enough. But this night in particular is an important one for the roster—or at least at wide receiver—and Ross has a one-game window to try to take advantage of things.
The Chiefs are elevating Justyn Ross from the practice squad for the game against the Buccaneers.
The Chiefs are coming into Monday night with a need at wide receiver given the glut of injuries at the position. Rashee Rice? Out for the year. Hollywood Brown? Likely the same. JuJu Smith-Schuster? Out for two games already with a hamstring injury and not sure when he'll be ready. Skyy Moore? Not tha he was all that useful but he's also out for the season.
Recent injuries at other positions, including tight ends Jared Wiley and Jody Fortson along with running back Isiah Pacheco, only serve to further compound the offensive limitations suffered so far this season by the Chiefs.
Here's where Ross's opportunity comes in. The Chiefs have already made one move to bolster the position by trading for veteran DeAndre Hopkins from the Tennessee Titans. However, NFL insider Dianna Russini said the Chiefs are still searching for further help at receiver and the NFL's trade deadline is on Tuesday.
Yes, that makes it a bad week to have a Monday night game.
Basically, the Chiefs have Monday night to sort out the position and see how wide receiver looks before being forced to make a move within hours after the game if they want to make another deal work. There are plenty of options on the trade block, but the player has to be a good fit in multiple ways (skill set, finances) and the Chiefs might be reticent to part with more draft assets than they already have.
For this game, the hole at wide receiver is being filled internally with the presence of Ross and this is why this night is so important for the Clemson product. He's being given a chance to make an impression on the coaching staff with this game-day elevation. It doesn't mean he's going to get a predictable amount of reps or that Patrick Mahomes will even trust him enough to give him a target or two. However, the Chiefs aren't looking for Ross or anyone else to be a volume target. They just need one more dependable receiver.
The coaches will be watching how Ross conducts himself on game day and how ready he looks to step into some meaningful role if called upon down the road. If Ross looks the part, the Chiefs might feel okay hanging up the phone and sticking with what they have instead of forcing through another trade shortly before the league halts any more transactions.