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The Kansas City Chiefs got their first win of the season with Week 3’s 22-9 victory over the New York Giants. And Kansas City’s 21st-ranked scoring offense will receive a boost from the return of Xavier Worthy in Week 4. The Chiefs expect the second-year wideout to play in Sunday’s pivotal matchup against the 1-2 Baltimore Ravens.
Worthy was the Chiefs’ second-leading receiver last season. And Ryan Clark believes his return could have a big impact on the Patrick Mahomes-led passing attack.
“This is excellent news. And I think it’s excellent news because of Tyquan Thornton’s emergence. You know that you have another viable threat at the receiver position. Now you add Xavier Worthy to that. And I want to see if they’re going to utilize him in that role we saw develop down the stretch where it wasn’t all about taking the chunk shots. It was about putting the football in his hands early,” Clark said, per NFL on ESPN.
Worthy dislocated his shoulder on the Chiefs’ third play of the season after a collision with Travis Kelce. The former first-round pick suffered a torn labrum and missed the last two weeks with the injury. But he’s returned to a full practice and head coach Andy Reid says the wideout is good to go against the Ravens.
Thornton has played well in Worthy’s absence, racking up nine catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns so far this season. In Week 3, he posted a career-high 71 receiving yards as Mahomes targeted the fourth-year wideout nine times.
Worthy’s return could benefit Thornton, opening up additional opportunities for underneath routes. In fact, Worthy’s elite speed should lift the entire Chiefs’ offense. Without him, Kansas City has lacked a consistent deep threat beyond Hollywood Brown.
The offense has lacked explosiveness this season. Mahomes has thrown for just three touchdowns after three weeks. And the Chiefs are averaging just 20 points per game. Worthy’s return could add a new layer to the passing attack.
Of course, the injury is still a concern. Worthy is reportedly going to play with a harness on his shoulder. While the Chiefs could certainly benefit from adding a talented wideout to the offense, it’s unclear how explosive Worthy will be in his first game back from a serious injury.
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