Kansas City Chiefs: Sammy Watkins takes offense to another level

The Kansas City Chiefs will likely be without wide receiver Sammy Watkins once again this weekend. That’s too bad too, as Watkins is the piece of the offense that makes it darn near impossible to stop.

When the Kansas City Chiefs signed Sammy Watkins to a three-year deal worth $48 million, fans were certainly skeptical. Watkins was the fourth overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft and while his production was good in Buffalo, injuries made it easy for the Bills to part ways with him.

Watkins rebounded nicely in Los Angeles last year, finding the end zone eight times in a Rams uniform. He missed just one game a season ago too, showing that he could, for the most part, remain healthy.

Watkins apparently picked the Chiefs because he believed in Patrick Mahomes and what this offense could do. Even without the Clemson star, Mahomes still had Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Chris Conley, and Demarcus Robinson to target.

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Bringing Watkins in signified the final piece to the Chiefs offensive puzzle and so far, despite the injuries, he’s been worth the dough shelled out to him last spring. Watkins has played in ten games this season (though it’s worth noting he barely did anything against the Rams) and has hauled in 40 receptions for 519 yards and three touchdowns.

Last year, in 15 games, Watkins had 593 yards as a Ram. Yes, he was more of a red zone target in LA, but the point is that he’s already passed his total yardage and he’s done so in five less games.

What Watkins adds to this offense is yet another target that defenses have to cover. When they don’t cover him, bad things can happen for that defense, as the Steelers and Broncos both discovered in the worst possible way. Watkins went for 100+ yards in week two in Pittsburgh and again in week eight against Denver.

During that second Broncos game, Watkins also found the end zone twice, showing what a dominant red zone target he can be. Andy Reid has also dialed up new things for Watkins, utilizing him in the run game at times as well. He has five carries for 52 yards this season.

So yes, while Watkins is one of the highest paid wide receivers in the game and has had some “meh” games while battling injuries, I’d still say he’s worth the cash. When Sammy Watkins is out on the gridiron, he puts this Kansas City Chiefs offense over the top and that could be the difference come January.

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