The Kansas City Chiefs surprised their fans yet again on Monday night with the inactive list released shortly before kickoff of their showdown against the Washington Commanders at Arrowhead Stadium.
While some of the names on the inactive list were expected, Trey Smith and Josh Simmons, for example, others were a bit more surprising. Namely, cornerback Kristian Fulton and wide receiver Jalen Royals. Fulton has not played since Kansas City's Week 2 matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles, but Royals, on the other hand, is a healthy scratch after being in uniform and available to play for the last four weeks.
Rookie WR Jalen Royals a Healthy Scratch for MNF Against Commanders
The fourth-round pick out of Utah State has yet to catch a pass since the start of the regular season, but he has contributed on special teams, returning one kickoff for 30 yards while also recording a tackle. Rashee Rice's return only pushes the rookie further down the depth chart and lessens his importance in the WR room; that was to be expected, though. However, it is a bit surprising to see him as a healthy scratch for this game after seeing time on special teams in each of his four appearances thus far.
When you combine this decision with the knee issue that seemingly popped up out of nowhere and forced the rookie to miss the first three weeks of the 2025 regular season, this is the type of surprising turn that Royals was hoping to avoid as we moved deeper into Kansas City's schedule.
While it would be irresponsible to read too much into Royals being inactive against Washington, this could lead one to believe that the fourth-round pick is now on the outside looking in of the WR rotation. With the aforementioned Rice, along with Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown, Juju Smith-Schuster, Tyquan Thornton, and Nik Remigio all slotted ahead of Royals on the depth chart, it could take an injury for the rookie to find his way back to the active roster.
The league's trade deadline is on the horizon as Nov. 4 is only moving closer. With a surplus of wide receivers on the roster, perhaps the Chiefs would be willing to ship one of those names above out of town to address other needs and, in turn, open up an opportunity for the rookie to show what he can do as part of this high-powered offensive attack.