Patrick Mahomes’ new offensive weapon cites Chiefs draft night trade a ‘dream’

Worthy is the true definition of a speedster as he broke the NFL Scouting Combine record by running a 4.21 in the 40-yard dash to go along with a smaller frame at 5-foot-11, 165 pounds. While there were other teams attached to his name like the Miami Dolphins whom head coach Mike McDaniel is known for loving speed, Worthy mentioned he “kepy my hopes alive” that he would end up with the Super Bowl champions.

“It was just an amazing thing,” Worthy said. “Just knowing it was a possibility to go there, I just kept my hopes alive and it happened.”

Wide receiver has been a huge need for the Chiefs with the lack of talent, plus some off-the-field troubles with Rashee Rice recently, but it has been addressed with the acquisition of Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and now with Worthy. Chiefs general manager Brett Veach said that trading up with the Buffalo Bills out of all teams “made sense” for them as he believes Worthy “could grasp the offense” right from the jump.

“When you have a guy that you have a vision for and that you like and you have a chance to do something, especially with a pick swap, it just made sense for us,” Veach said. “Just the ability that we felt that he could grasp the offense and come in right away, I think, was probably the motivating factor for us to just go ahead and make sure we got him before we got hopped by potentially anybody else.”

“Having Xavier and Hollywood, I think, will make life easier for Travis and Rashee,” Veach continued. “As the season goes on, we’ll have an offense that can attack in multiple different ways and always keep defenses guessing.”

Veach’s past with Chiefs moving up in drafts

It isn’t the first time Veach has been in the war room for the Chiefs wanting to move up in the draft and even said he was looking to do it again in 2024. Kansas City did it in 2022 when they moved up to get defensive back Trent McDuffie who has been a staple for that unit.

The other time they went up in the draft was in 2017 where Veach moved the Chiefs up 17 spots to get their franchise’s best player in its history in Mahomes. That trade actually also involved the Bills which is ironic since the two teams have formed rivalry in the postseason where Veach explained how both have made deals with each other before.

“I think everyone goes into the process with their own list of priorities and what they want to do and accomplish,” Veach said per The Athletic. “They have done a great job over the years. I’m sure it made sense to them. They ended up making another (trade down) move there, too. We were on our own agenda. We saw value there. When you get to that point, and you’re so close, you’re always second-guessing yourself. It’s easy to say maybe if you sat there, (Worthy) would’ve been there at (32nd pick), but we saw teams move consistently after we picked.”

Andy Reid talks the traits Worthy has that make him a star in the making

Another person very happy with the pick is Chiefs head coach Andy Reid who has been looking for a speedy receiver since the departure of Tyreek Hill. He did mention that the team has found success without the trait, but expressed “it doesn’t hurt to have down-the-field speed.”

“It doesn’t hurt to have down-the-field speed,” Reid said. “We’ve functioned without the great speed down the field and done well. But if you have an opportunity to get somebody that you think is a good player, just not a speed guy, I think you probably need to take advantage of that.”

“I think you’ll see this toughness he’s got, which jumped out at me (on film),” Reid continued on Worthy. “He’s got great football instincts, and he’s a tremendous worker. In this offense, you’ve got to be able to do that and have those characteristics. He’s smart with it, too. You don’t want him running into a wall and hurting himself. But at the same time, there’s a time when you’ve got to be able to go get it. He’s done that at (the college) level, but he’s got to do it at this level.”

Worthy’s skillset has made stars under Reid

Speaking of Tyreek Hill, Worthy mentioned that he saw the success the NFL star had with the Chiefs and sees himself in that same role. Another speedy receiver he could be compared to is DeSean Jackson who was drafted to the Philadelphia Eagles under Reid and Veach as Worthy talked about both of the players.

“Seeing the success that Tyreek Hill had in this offense, I feel like it’ll be amazing,” Worthy said. “Having the success (Jackson) had in this system with Andy Reid, it’s just amazing to be able to have a coach that actually gets you as a player and values you as a player because he had that player before.”

“I pride myself on being a difference-maker,” Worthy continued. “I pride myself on heart. That’s what motivates me and makes me different.”

Worthy is joining a Chiefs team that has won back-to-back Super Bowls and is looking to do what no other team in the NFL has done before and its to win a third in a row. In his rookie season, the University of Texas product could be a huge part of that.