Matt Nagy Thinks ‘Time Is Coming’ for Xavier Worthy’s Greater Impact

Xavier Worthy's numbers might be down, but OC Matt Nagy sees enough positives to believe that better days are ahead for the Chiefs' rookie WR.

Oct 27, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) scores on a 9-yard touchdown reception against the Las Vegas Raiders in the second half at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

When Xavier Worthy notched a career-high 73 receiving yards on just three catches in Week 4's win over the Los Angeles Chargers, many thought the Kansas City Chiefs rookie was set for a breakout. While the reigning Super Bowl champions are finding ways to win games en route to a 9-0 start, though, Worthy's statistical production has cratered.

Despite logging 28 targets in the five games since his aforementioned best performance, Worthy has only 11 receptions, 92 yards and a touchdown to show for it. On the ground, he has four carries for negative yardage. In Kansas City's last two games, Worthy's combined line is one touch on six targets and a single all-purpose yard. One.

Several factors are at play here, as there's no lone culprit for Worthy failing to make the leap the Chiefs hinted at in recent weeks. The first-round pick himself has experienced his fair share of hiccups, but quarterback Patrick Mahomes can also do a better job putting him in positions to succeed.

The Chiefs don't seem to be worried about the lack of box score production from their rookie wideout. Speaking to the media this week, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy gave Worthy a vote of confidence and said better days could be right around the corner.

“I really like where he’s at," Nagy said. "I know statistically, the numbers aren’t really where a lot of people would want them, or any of us. You’d like to get maybe some more catches type [of] deal, but he’s been fine. You see some of the shots that we’re taking, and the stuff underneath is there as well, so we’ve just got to be patient working through it [and] understand that those guys are working each and every day to get their timing down. For Xavier to learn this offense – it’s not easy. We have all the confidence. Xavier has been in a phenomenal mindset this entire time and I think that’s probably most important because the time is coming when we start hitting some of those, and it’s going to be fun.”

With Marquise "Hollywood" Brown and Rashee Rice both on the shelf with long-term injuries, it was expected that Mahomes wouldn't be quite as sharp throwing to other options. Worthy, however, lags behind everyone else in terms of viability. Out of all qualified Kansas City pass catchers this season, he ranks (un)comfortably in last place for success rate and EPA at 41% and -3.27, respectively. The closest players in each metric are both running backs: Samaje Perine (47%) and Isiah Pacheco (-0.58).

It's important to keep in mind that relative to a halfback or even a primary middle-of-the-field threat, many of Worthy's targets come with an increased degree of difficulty. Still, one would anticipate a bit more consistency.

Xavier Worthy is still very much a work in progress, but there have been a number of near-big plays over the last few weeks. Gotta figure these are going to hit more often in the second half of the year. pic.twitter.com/hbb8aF7YVk

— Bill Barnwell (@billbarnwell) November 13, 2024

Mahomes and Worthy have been close to connecting on numerous occasions. A few of those would make his numbers look much better. Their chemistry is a mixed bag right now, much like the Chiefs' 2024 draft class to this point. The team's top pick shows flashes of being who they envisioned back in April, and Nagy makes a sound case.

But if Worthy's time is coming, so is the time for mere possibility to turn into expectation.

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