Former Chiefs draft pick starts training camp on the right foot (by being healthy)

The Kansas City Chiefs know that Travis Kelce's time with the team is closer to the end than the beginning and that's why finding a replacement to step into Kelce's shoes is pivotal. As soon as the Chiefs drafted Jared Wiley out of TCU in the fourth round of last year's draft, there were definitely people who thought he could be the Kelce replacement Kansas City has been searching for.

Unfortunately, fans haven't gotten to see much of anything from Wiley so far. The TCU star, who scored eight touchdowns for the Horned Frogs in 2023, appeared in just seven games for the Chiefs last year and had just one catch for seven yards in that span.

Wiley missed the second half of his rookie season with a torn ACL but the good news is that he's healthy and ready to roll for training camp. It's going to be a massive test for Wiley this summer, as he's not a lock to make the roster.

Kelce is obviously making the team as is Noah Gray, who signed an extension over the offseason. That means that Wiley is fighting for the TE3 job where he'll compete with UDFA Jake Briningstool, journeyman Robert Tonyan, Tre Watson, and Geor'Quarius Spivey.

Chiefs TE Jared Wiley is healthy entering a crucial training camp

The good news for Wiley is that Andy Reid sung his praises at the beginning of training camp. The Chiefs head coach noted that while Wiley had a drop, he mostly impressed in his first glimpse of action since his injury last November.

"[Wiley]’s worked hard, and it’s good to get him back out there, to get his timing back. So I thought he did a pretty good job. He had the one drop down here, but other than that, he did a pretty good job out there."

Fans were excited about the Wiley pick when it happened, especially with him being viewed as excellent value in the fourth round. While the injury was unfortunate, the hope is that Wiley can show what made so many people excited about him as a prospect and contribute to the offense this year.

Wiley certainly needs to show something in training camp and the preseason and being healthy gives him a chance to do just that. It'll be fun to see what the TCU product has in the tank and if he can show enough to stick on the Chiefs' roster for the 2025 season.