Chiefs WR Hollywood Brown can get the vindication he has wanted for years in Week 1

One of the newest members of the Kansas City Chiefs offense will get a chance to face the team that drafted him right out of the gate. 

The Baltimore Ravens selected Marquise "Hollywood" Brown as the No. 25 overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft after he led a standout career with the Oklahoma Sooners. He was paired with one of the NFL's most exciting young playmakers in Lamar Jackson, but the pairing didn't quite work out as many had hoped. 

Brown often felt like an afterthought in Greg Roman's offense, which was strongly focused on running the football. He ultimately forced his way out of Baltimore and was reunited with his college teammate Kyler Murray on the Arizona Cardinals. 

"It's about happiness," Brown said, via Arizona's website. "I want to feel like I am a part of something to win. At the Ravens, I just felt like sometimes they really didn't need me. Regardless if I was there or not, they were going to win games.

"I love the game too much. I want to be involved."

Brown was certainly more of an offensive focal point with the Cardinals, but he was on a bad team. He dealt with injuries to himself and his QB Murray throughout his tenure in Arizona. Now, he has everything he ever wanted in an offense. From a winning culture to a gun-slinging quarterback to an offensive mastermind who runs a pass-heavy scheme. His decision to join the Chiefs in free agency was a blend of it all. 

“Pat (Mahomes) was a big part of it, being able to play with Pat, (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid, a winning culture," Brown told reporters in March. "The offense I felt like I could come in and I could help, I could fit in. All those things played a part, they were strong on me so there was mutual interest, that is very appealing.”

It's not your typical revenge game for Hollywood Brown

With the Chiefs set to face the Ravens in Week 1 of the 2024 NFL season, Brown will get his opportunity at "revenge" immediately. This isn't your typical NFL revenge game, though. Brown has maintained that he harbors no ill will toward the Ravens over what transpired, but there is little doubt he's now in what he considers the ideal situation. He has a chance to be vindicated in his desire to seek a trade from Baltimore.

The Chiefs sought to add Brown this offseason and have a distinct plan to get him involved in this offense. He's not going to be the afterthought that he once felt he was in Baltimore, and he should play a significant role for the team in Week 1 opposite TE Travis Kelce and first-round draft pick Xavier Worthy.

Will Brown have developed the chemistry with QB Patrick Mahomes this offseason to be able to prove it against his former team in Week 1? Can Andy Reid find a way to get him involved right away so that he can actually have that vindication? That all remains to be seen, but he'll have the golden opportunity to show it on national television.