One of the under-the-radar storylines of the Kansas City Chiefs' underwhelming season has been a lack of touches from star receiver Xavier Worthy. The second-year playmaker has managed only 256 receiving yards and one touchdown in seven starts, with this production being limited due to a lack of consistent targets as well as an early-season injury that kept him out of the lineup.
Still, head coach Andy Reid has full faith in the receiver, commenting on the situation via A to Z Sports reporter Charles Goldman:
"We try to get them all involved the best we can. Sometimes you're going to have that where they take somebody away... We're not down on Xavier Worthy. We know he's a good player. We'd like to get the ball into the good player's hands"Andy Reid on Xavier Worthy
Reid is making it clear that he wants to put the ball in Worthy's hands, and it seems likely that this will be a focus out of the bye week.
Chiefs Need to Get Xavier Worthy Rolling in 2nd Half of Season
A potential uptick in targets could be linked to the return of Rashee Rice, who is going to be quarterback Patrick Mahomes' primary target down the stretch. Teams will likely be focusing even more on Rice down the stretch, which could open the field for Worthy to go to work.
Another piece of the puzzle here is that Worthy's early-season shoulder dislocation has played a role in his underwhelming production. The pass-catcher quickly returned to the lineup post-injury, so it's possible that Kansas City wanted it to heal even more before increasing Worthy's workload, keeping the short-term and long-term pictures in mind.
However, now that the Chiefs are sitting at 5-4 and have fallen out of the playoff picture, Reid's words likely signal a change. No longer can Kansas City simply sit back and trust what they have been doing to get it where it needs to go. A small part of this is more consistently involving Worthy's speed within the offense, especially after proving what he can do when he amassed 742 scrimmage yards and nine total touchdowns as a rookie.
Rice is Mahomes' primary receiver and the best playmaker on the roster; with this comes a level of attention that Worthy simply isn't going to garner. Finding a way to get Worthy going could even open up the field for Rice once opposing defenses realize they have two threatening receivers to guard.
Reid's change of plans makes it clear that Worthy will be a focal point to close out the season. Now, it's up to the young receiver to make the most of his opportunity, hopefully giving Chiefs fans reasons to believe in his potential after a slow start to the season.