Kansas City Chiefs Player Profile: Donnie Avery

By Josh Michaels | May 19, 2014

The 2014 NFL draft came and went and with that, the so did the chance for the Kansas City Chiefs to draft a wide receiver.

Why? Good question.

From the sounds of it, the Chiefs are content with the guys they have in-house. They traded Jon Baldwin to the Niners for A.J. Jenkins who does have some upside. They have Dwayne Bowe who, when he wants to, can be a legit number one target. They also acquired Weston Dressler from the CFL this past off-season and they have Donnie Avery.

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Today, I wanted to focus on Donnie Avery as our player profile. The hot topic seems to be about the Chiefs receiving corp and the lack of production that has come from the position and Avery is they guy who needs to be replaced, right?

First, How did he get here?:

Avery was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the 2nd round of the 2008 NFL draft and was the first receiver taken in that class. His rookie season would be his best, as he caught 57 passes for 673 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also ran for 1 score as well. Avery played well enough to earn The Caroll Rosenbloom award which is given to the teams rookie of the year.

In 2009, he saw a bit of lapse in production but still managed to catch a career high in touchdowns with 5. It all took a turn for Donnie during the pre season of 2010. He tore his ACL and had to miss the entire season. The Rams decided to cut him in September of 2011.

He was quickly signed by the Tennessee Titans where he only played in 8 games and caught one touchdown. Again, Avery was released after the season and picked up by the Indianapolis Colts. It’s in Indy where Avery saw career highs in a lot of categories including catches (60), yards (781), and games with 100+ yards receiving (2). He also caught Andrew Lucks first career touchdown, for what that’s worth.

(Stats via NFL.com)

After being released again, he found his way to Kansas City.

A Look At His 2013 Stats:

Avery started in all 16 games for the Chiefs last season but, only managed to catch 40 passes. He averaged near the bottom in yards (596) and touchdowns (2). Where Avery’s best production get’s over looked was in his yards per catch average. For the season, he averaged 14.9 yards per play which was better than names like A.J. Green and Eric Decker.

Now, I’m not saying he’s anywhere near the talent of those two. He just simply isn’t. But what I am saying is that he can be a legitimate deep threat for this offense.

His speed really flashed against Philly on Thursday Night Football. It was Avery’s best game as he caught 7 passes for 141 yards and averaged 20.1 yards per catch. He stepped up big on that night.

He also showed the ability to go deep against San Diego and Indy during the play off game. Against the Chargers, Avery caught a beautiful 32 yard touchdown and another 79 yard bomb against the Colts.

Overall Thought:

While better production could come from his position, Avery deserves a second season in Kansas City. That doesn’t mean he’ll get it, because I do think A.J. Jenkins will challenge him for that spot. Partner that with the Dressler signing and the selection of De’Anthony Thomas and there could be someone not making the cut.

Lets see what Avery can do with another year under his belt in Andy Reid’s offense. He’s only stayed with one team (the Rams) for two consecutive season so perhaps some stability could go a long way for his production.

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