Chiefs' Jalen Royals Listed as Must-Watch Rookie

The Kansas City Chiefs decided to take a wide receiver earlier this offseason in the 2025 NFL Draft, selecting Jalen Royals out of Utah State. Royals is coming into a system with the likes of Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy, which should only improve the wide receiving core for years to come.

Royals was projected to get drafted in the second or third round, but the Chiefs ended up drafting him in the fourth. With the Chiefs wanting to be more explosive on the offensive side of the ball, bringing in a guy like Royals should help them achieve that goal.

Several fans are excited for Royals' involvement this season, and so are several members of the Chiefs' coaching staff. Already catching comparisons to Rice, Royals has a ton of expectations to live up to over the next four seasons. While he may be a middle road pick, some see Royals having a bigger season than anticipated as a rookie.

CBS Sports' Ryan Wilson was asked if he believes the Chiefs found another big-play player in Jalen Royals, and his response should only motivate Chiefs Kingdom to get behind this guy as soon as possible.

"I think so," Wilson said. "And I love Jalen Royals last fall. He got hurt towards the end of last season, so he didn't finish the year for Utah State. He's 6 feet, over 200 lb, ran a 4.42, which I think surprised some folks," Wilson said.

"Sometimes rookies, Xavier Worthy last year, for example, have to step up. And Jalen Royals is off to a fantastic start, as much as you can be in the shorts and t-shirts portion of the summer workouts. But Andy Reid has spoken glowingly of him. He's flashed at mini camp and OTAs. And that's the direction you want to be in going towards training camp."

Royals could have a major role in this Chiefs offense, whether he does it on his own or due to injury. Wilson breaks down that portion of Royals' game as well.

"I think he's going to have an opportunity, should someone get banged up, to go out there and make some plays in much the same way Xavier Worthy was expected to do that a year ago, as the season progressed and he got better."

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