Xavier Worthy is now the Chiefs unexpected WR1 and best hope for a three-peat

Heading into training camp, many Kansas City Chiefs fans expected Xavier Worthy's role to be somewhat limited in his rookie season. That expectation made sense at the time, considering that Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice were healthy and Travis Kelce was still around. Worthy was projected to be the fourth most targeted pass-catcher in 2024.

Now, things have changed dramatically. Brown is expected to miss most, if not all, of the regular season, and we may not see Rashee Rice until next October due to an ACL injury and a looming suspension. As of now, Worthy is the best wide receiver in Kansas City, and it isn't particularly close. Justin Watson is okay but not a high-end player, JuJu Smith-Schuster is limited, Mecole Hardman is a role player, and Skyy Moore is, well, Skyy Moore.

If the Chiefs are going to be the first team to win three straight consecutive Super Bowls, Worthy is going to have to be a primary option for Patrick Mahomes. Before, it was okay if he was just a depth piece, good for a small handful of deep shots and scripted touches. Today, he must be a full-time wide receiver who logs 30+ snaps a game.

Worthy is the wide receiver on the team with the best YAC ability and who's also the best deep threat. He needs to be able to run a complete route tree for this offense to function. He needs to become a complete player to prevent the Chiefs' offense from becoming a mess.

Injuries have thrust rookie Xavier Worthy into a pivotal role for the Kansas City Chiefs

To be fair, Worthy showed in college that he's perfectly capable of that. Many people wrongly labeled him as a pure gadget player who's good for the occasional deep shot. That just isn't true. While it is fair to say that he may have needed time to adapt to the Andy Reid offense, he proved at Texas that he has the tools to be a No. 1 wide receiver in the NFL.

In Sunday's victory over the Chargers, Worthy proved what he could do. He scored one of the most exciting (regular season) touchdowns for the Chiefs in a while. It was also the first 50+ yard passing touchdown for Patrick Mahomes since December of 2022. He also caught the game-sealing catch on a drag route. He finished the game with three catches, 73 yards, and 1 touchdown on four targets.

While Worthy is the top wide receiver option for Patrick Mahomes, he's not the only guy. The previously mentioned Justin Watson and JuJu Smith-Schuster, as well as tight end Travis Kelce, will take some of the pressure off him. It's also likely that the Chiefs will add another receiver before the trade deadline. But until that happens, expect Worthy to be the top WR option for the remainder of the season.

In the first four games, Worthy has been open deep multiple times, but Mahomes has been unable to get him the ball. He's been playing better than any boxscore would indicate. Once #15 gets out of his funk, expect Worthy's production to skyrocket—that is, if Worthy proves he can handle the workload of a top-tier receiver. If the 21-year-old isn't ready, then the Chiefs' bid for a three-peat might very well be in trouble.

Looking at other Chiefs rookies in Week 4

Now onto Carson Steele. Unfortunately for him, his return to Los Angeles got off to an ugly start. On his first carry of the day, he lost a fumble to spoil the Chiefs' first drive of the game. He would only see one more carry and two more targets the rest of the game as the newly-signed Kareem Hunt saw a healthy workload.

Given how this was Steele's second fumble in three weeks, with Kareem Hunt and Samaje Perine getting up to speed, and Isiah Pacheco and Clyde Edwards-Helaire expected to return in a few weeks, expect Steele's snap count and role in the offense to drop significantly. He'll still be the fullback, but he likely won't see many non-garbage time touches once Pacheco returns.

As for Kingsley Suamataia, he waiting in the wings at left tackle. Although he isn't playing lights out, Wanya Morris has brought some stability to Patrick Mahomes' blindside, although that isn't saying much. If Morris begins to struggle, it wouldn't surprise anyone if Suamataia is the starting left tackle once again.

In conclusion, it's feast or famine with Xavier Worthy. Given the situation the Chiefs currently find themselves in, they're forced to throw Worthy into the fire. If he lives up to the challenge, the quest for a three-peat is still on. If not, expect a long and tough-to-watch regular season for Kansas City.

After fumbling again, Carson Steele may have lost the trust of the coaching staff. With multiple other backs being recently signed as well as returning from injuries/illnesses, I wouldn't recommend carrying Steele on your fantasy team this year.