The Kansas City Chiefs battled all night against the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football, needing an extra frame to get the job done in overtime, winning 33-30.
The offense was humming, making the Colts' defense work on every down. Kenneth Walker paced the offense with 24 carries for 117 yards and did damage in the passing game, with 6 catches for 61 yards. Even Travis Kelce turned back the clock on Sunday night, posting his first 100-yard + 1 TD game since October 2023.
What seemed to be missing from the offensive attack was the rest of the wide receiver corps. Of Patrick Mahomes' 32 completions, 15 of those went to Walker and Kelce, showing how much more work there is to do for this receiving corps if the Chiefs' offense is to reach its full potential. It was not just this Colts game in which the receiving room left a lot to be desired. Last week against Denver, the receiving room (minus Kelce + tight ends) posted 5 catches for 37 yards.
Chiefs are winning despite uneven wide receiver production
Through two weeks, the Chiefs have faced top-shelf conference opponents from a year ago, and both of those games were wins, even when their receiving corps has left a lot to be desired. At this stage in the season, it is not yet time to sound the alarm, but this production in the passing game cannot continue.
Leaving the offensive production to Kenneth Walker and Travis Kelce can only work for so long before defenses adapt and force other members to step up. Tyquan Thornton was a bright spot in Week 2, outperforming his preseason standing as a potential #3 or #4 option in this passing game behind Rice, Kelce, and Worthy.
In the aggregate, Rice posted a better outing in Week 2 than in Week 1, but other than a 31-yard catch in the 2nd quarter, he accumulated 3 catches for 52 yards across the rest of the game. Worthy was not much better, with 25 yards on 5 catches.
There is something to be said for the offensive overhaul taking place in Kansas City, with Kenneth Walker III demanding touches as the bellcow of this offense; as long as there is only one football in play, running the ball means you can't pass the ball. However, even with 24 rushing attempts from Walker, Mahomes still threw the football 47 times, with 21 of those targets going to Kelce/Walker.
Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy need to become reliable options
The absence of Rice and Worthy in the early season is concerning, especially considering obvious passing moments where the ball didn't go toward #4 or #1 in red. And when it did, there were drops or poor decision-making that made it difficult to gauge their effectiveness. Rice had a catchable ball broken up by a rookie corner on a key 3rd down in the 4th quarter, and Worthy was unable to get separation on designed screens and short routes hoping to capitalize on his speed.
The danger here is the lack of an intermediate and short passing game in the early season without Walker and Kelce, and when the moment demands performance from Worthy or Rice, there continues to be a lack of separation and ability to make plays. Drops in key moments and an inability to get separation have made this room difficult to depend on.
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