Jalen Royals delivers preseason performance that could shake up Chiefs’ depth chart

Arguably, the Kansas City Chiefs' most exciting takeaway from the second week of preseason action was the performance of Jalen Royals. The receiver finished with six catches on six targets for 51 yards, with his longest catch being 17 yards. Royals looked probably the best he's ever looked in a Chiefs jersey, breaking multiple tackles and gaining yards after the catch.

Kansas City lacks any proven depth at receiver, with question marks around the team's starting trio in Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, and Tyquan Thornton. With this in mind, the door is very much open for a depth receiver to step into a more consistent role, and Royals is attempting to make that push. While all the hype has been around Cyrus Allen, Royals himself is starting to gain momentum.

There were comparisons to Royals being a lesser version of Rice, and a sense of belief that the receiver would step into a meaningful role. This game served as a reminder of this and set up the Chiefs to find a surprise contributor early in the 2026 season.

Last year Royals was blocked not only by Rice and Worthy, but veteran talents, in JuJu Smith-Schuster and Hollywood Brown, who offered Andy Reid far more experience. After losing both of the aging receivers in free agency, the Chiefs have no choice but to trust their youth, with Royals or Allen being the most likely pieces to take a leap.

Second-year man Jalen Royals may have just saved himself a spot on the 53-man roster

It would make a great deal of sense for Royals to have his breakout season in year two, as it's well known how hard Reid's system can be on rookie receivers and the veteran coaches' usual dismay at playing rookies. There is also the fact that there has been time for Mahomes to build a level of chemistry with the receiver. Camp reps over the last two seasons have piled up due to other pieces dealing with injuries or landing in new spots.

With this in mind, the Chiefs should have a level of excitement after what was undeniably Royals' best game in a Chiefs uniform. It will be interesting to watch whether or not this influences Kansas City to feature the receiver a bit more come the start of the season, and perhaps give the 23-year-old more chances to build his game.

Royals needs to take advantage of the opportunity before him with a wide-open depth chart and a clear need to find surprise contributors. It was a great moment for the receiver and an undeniably exciting development for a franchise that has spent the last year thinning out the position, betting on their in-house options.

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