Chiefs Recommended to Add Veteran WR Marquez Callaway

The Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Miami Dolphins in Week 9, even putting together a pair of truly impressive scoring drives in the first half of play. With that said, the rest of the game did nothing to ease any concerns about the team's wide receiver group.

Through nine games, Kansas City has yet to get its wideout room completely sorted out. Rookie Rashee Rice and veteran Justin Watson can be mostly relied on as solid contributors but in an ideal world, they're depth pieces behind a No. 1 target. That isn't the Chiefs' reality, however, and no one behind them has been able to step up yet. General manager Brett Veach chose to stand pat at the trade deadline, signaling that he's confident in the current group getting on track. Are there any free agents that could help?

According to Bleacher Report, there is one man who makes sense. In an article highlighting every roster's biggest weakness at the "halfway" point of the 2023 campaign, Kansas City was urged to add fourth-year receiver Marquez Callaway into the fold. Here's the logic behind it: 

The Chiefs let the trade deadline come and go without adding a wide receiver. They are still one of the best teams in the league, but they might come to regret that. Skyy Moore, Kadarius Toney, Justin Watson and Richie James all made appearances on the Chiefs' injury report last week with various ailments.

Marquez Callaway is one of the best free-agent options available. The 26-year-old had a strong 2021 campaign which included 698 yards and six touchdowns. He's at least worth a look for a team that needs receiver options.

Callaway, who entered the league as an undrafted free agent in 2020, has already spent time with three different NFL teams and attended workouts with others. The former Tennessee standout began his professional career with the New Orleans Saints, having a quiet rookie season but then proceeding to haul in 46 passes for 698 yards and six touchdowns as a sophomore. He led the team in two of those three categories, emerging as a potential building block for the future. Despite that, Callaway started just three of his 14 games in 2022 and posted only 158 receiving yards.

The journeyman wideout hit free agency earlier this year, signing with the Denver Broncos in March but not making it out of August before being waived. After that, he had a brief stint on the Las Vegas Raiders' practice squad but was subsequently released in mid-October. Would it make sense for Callaway to return to the AFC West and sign with the Chiefs? 

That answer is likely a no. There's no discounting what Callaway accomplished two seasons ago, as he averaged 1.53 yards per route run (per Pro Football Focus) and looked to be a promising player. There's also no denying his age (25) and athletic profile (6'1", 205 pounds with a 38-inch vertical jump in the pre-draft process). If the Chiefs were in the early or middle stages of their offseason, this would be a different conversation. In that scenario, pursuing a player like Callaway would be just fine.

The Chiefs aren't in the offseason, though, and the bye week doesn't present enough time for someone on the fringe to come in, learn the offense and make an impact as the team pursues a championship. That, combined with the number of cooks the Chiefs already have in the kitchen, makes it a difficult sell. Callaway deserves another shot somewhere but for the rest of this season, that place probably shouldn't be Kansas City.