Arrowhead Pride
Welcome back to the Arrowhead Pride Mailbag! Each week, watch for your opportunity to submit your Kansas City Chiefs questions in The Feed, which is found on AP’s home page.
Ahead of Sunday’s matchup between the Chiefs and the Baltimore Ravens — with both teams unexpectedly at 1-2 — let’s see what is on our readers’ minds.
The rookie running back Brashard Smith looked like the only weapon out of the backfield. Why aren’t we seeing more touches for him?
What is the floor / ceiling on Jalen Royals Week 4 performance? I know he wasn’t on the radar in Week 3, but we would expect to at least see him targeted against the Ravens… right?
We’ll consider these two players together, since they are more likely to have an immediate impact on the offense than any hypothetical trade addition.
I actually like how the Chiefs have sprinkled Smith in over the first three weeks. We should also remember that he is a seventh-round selection who did not play running back until his final college season (and then after transferring). Concerns about the room should not dictate expectations for an individual rookie.
Presumably, Smith’s role will gradually grow. On Sunday, Kansas City did give him an opportunity on an aggressive pass that he didn’t reel in. Smith, however, did well on his two carries, so the Chiefs will likely build on that. Still, I don’t expect him to carve out a full-time role on offense this season, simply because of his contributions in the return game. Smith is Kansas City’s best candidate to score on the league’s new kickoff formation.
In this game, Royals may actually have a lower floor than the zero snaps he played in last Sunday’s win over the New York Giants. With Xavier Worthy presumably returning, the Chiefs could have seven wide receivers available for the first time this season. So a wideout will likely be made inactive against Baltimore — and Royals or Jason Brownlee would be the obvious candidates.
Given Kansas City’s obvious need for yards after the catch, I suspect Royals will play and have some designed plays against the Ravens — though I’d caution against high expectations for a rookie coming off a month-long injury. Barring a fluke busted coverage or missed tackle, I think his ceiling would be something similar to Rashee Rice’s debut in 2023: 20 offensive snaps, with three catches for 29 yards and a touchdown.
Is there a running back out there who could raise the ceiling? How about a trade?
If you look at the current list of available free agent running backs, it’s not inspiring. I rarely overreact, but after the mental lapses we saw in New York, I am very concerned about Isiah Pacheco. But I’d bet on him rebounding before I’d put money on Kansas City signing one of the available free agents.
The Chiefs should be tied to available...
