Chiefs Looking to Reload Receiver Corps
With the news of starting WR Rashee Rice officially out for the remainder of the 2024 season, the Kansas City Chiefs are looking to rebuild a depleted WR corps. To do so, they may have to strike deals with other teams, given that they also do not have much cap space left. The main goal for Kansas City is to find a receiver that can fit in with the Mahomes offense, still has plenty of talent left, and won’t break the bank to try and sign.
That last bit is the most important since KC is currently 28th in the remaining league salary cap space, with just $3.6 million left to bring in new players. That’s not a lot of room for signing any position players, and if they want more space, they could either resort to restructuring current player contracts or cutting loose change players, which may be the last resort option. But the best option for the Chiefs now is to try and strike deals in free agency with other teams. Question is, who might bite for KC?
KJ Osborn, New England Patriots
After being dealt from Minnesota, Osborn is in his first-year post-rookie contract with New England. He’s currently the backup WR2 for the Pats, meaning he wouldn’t get a lot of passes from Drake Maye and, before that, Jacoby Brissett. A visit to Kansas City with the Chiefs could turn the 28-year-old’s career around, though, and he could benefit from a stronger offense than the one he’s used to. Of course, Osborn may also want to stay in New England for now, given that the Pats’ offense has resurged a bit ever since Drake Maye became the starter under center.
The Chiefs should definitely keep him on their radar—he is still one of the top under-30 WR free agents for this season and next. The only hope is that if Osborn gets a decent amount of playtime alongside the likes of Xavier Worthy and company, he doesn’t drop it. Kansas City does not want that consistent problem from last season all over again.
Darius Slayton, New York Giants
Slayton is a strong candidate for a trade for a couple of reasons. One, he’s thrived as the Giants’ WR2 in the absence of rookie standout Malik Nabers. Two, the Chiefs and Giants have done WR business deals before, once acquiring the unfortunately now-maligned Kadarius Toney back in 2022. Both those notes are what makes Slayton a top candidate for other teams as well, and, just like Osborn, he’s also just a year or two removed from his rookie contract with a reasonably high ranking on free agent WR lists for 2025.
Slayton could definitely fit into an offense that used to have one of his old teammates, and he’d never quite have the drop risk that Toney had during his time in Kansas City. Now, the only thing that might stop the Chiefs from pursuing Slayton would be the cost- his contract is currently $6 million even, which would eat up almost all the remaining cap space the Chiefs have currently. If they want to sign him, it might be a bit more of a complex deal than signing Osborn, and even he has a tight-fitting contract at $4 million even.
DeAndre Hopkins, Tennessee Titans
Hopkins is the man every team is vying to get- the 32-year-old proven veteran, a true superstar receiver that any struggling franchise wants to try and sign. It might be the craziest idea for the Chiefs to try and sign someone that old, but this is the same franchise that has one of its greatest players dating one of the greatest pop singers- they know nothing but crazy!
Hopkins might play out the remainder of 2024 with Tennessee as part of his current two-year, $26 million contract, but when 2025 rolls around, and the Chiefs find themselves in desperate need of a top-tier WR like the days of Tyreek Hill, Hopkins might be the perfect choice to recharge an aerial attack that needs some bigger wings already this season. It might also be the worst choice given Hopkins’ age, even though he still has the firepower of the other younger guys on this list.
Other Candidates
The other, yet unlikely, candidates for the Chiefs include snatching Diontae Johnson, a key piece of the Carolina Panthers’ Andy Dalton offense. Johnson is like Osborn, now beginning to thrive under a new quarterback at center, which is probably why the Panthers will reject offers from other teams—they need as many players like him as they can get!
On the older side, Houston’s Robert Woods is looking for a potential way out ever since Tank Dell and Stefon Diggs have dwarfed him on the Texans’ depth chart, and that was honestly before leading receiver Nico Collins landed on IR for four weeks. He’s as old as Hopkins but is still somewhat of a hot commodity on the WR free agent list for 2025.
See also: Could a drop magnet be due for a surprise Kansas City reunion?