What Do the Chiefs Need to Add at the Skill Positions?

A breakdown of the Kansas City Chiefs' current situation at running back, wide receiver and tight end and how they should address it ahead of the 2021 season.

The Kansas City Chiefs have given a decent amount of attention to their offensive weapons over the course of the Andy Reid era, giving Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce and Sammy Watkins large contracts and taking Mecole Hardman and Clyde Edwards-Helaire with high draft picks over the last two drafts. But in the 2021 offseason, it's time to reload.

Watkins is likely on his way out of Kansas City and they didn't quite get the season they wanted from Hardman in 2020 after an incredibly efficient 2019. They are also likely to lose Demarcus Robinson in free agency, putting a gaping hole in the second wide receiver spot.

Where do the Chiefs stand now?

First, let's take a look at running back. The previously mentioned Edwards-Helaire is the clear starter and he is one heck of a talent, finishing last season with 874 rushing yards, 320 receiving yards, six total touchdowns, 52 total missed tackles forced and a 77.2 grade from Pro Football Focus (PFF). This is with three games missed from injury and the Chiefs having the league's lowest early-down run rate. It is possible that we may see even better things ahead for Edwards-Helaire in the coming few years, while he is still a good financial value.

Of course, the Chiefs have to have some talent behind Edwards-Helaire as well and they may already have that with Darrel Williams, who was just re-signed, and Darwin Thompson. Williams finished the 2020 season with 304 rushing yards, 151 receiving yards, two touchdowns and zero fumbles over 67 carries, while Thompson enters his third season with just 82 touches, 340 total yards and three touchdowns for his career. Neither of them were really able to take full advantage of Damien Williams opting out, but they should get another shot at it. Other clear running back options on the roster or from last season include futures/reserve player Derrick Gore, recently re-signed back Elijah McGuire and free agent Le'Veon Bell.

At wide receiver, we start with Tyreek Hill, one of the best in the business. Hill is coming off of another incredible season, having career-bests in yards with 1,768 and touchdowns with 17. Hill just turned 27 earlier this month, so he should theoretically have plenty of good years left. However, there's a lot of work to do with this position. The only other wide receivers on the roster are Mecole Hardman, Byron Pringle and Marcus Kemp, along with Antonio Callaway and Chad Williams being signed to futures/reserves contracts. This is not going to be enough to make Chiefs fans comfortable with Watkins and Robinson likely not returning from free agency.

For the tight end position, there is the Chiefs' final star receiving weapon, Travis Kelce. Kelce may have just had the best tight end season in NFL history, breaking numerous records, including most receiving yards for a tight end in a season with 1,776, along with a career-high 14 touchdowns. Even with the return of former Chief Blake Bell and a reported offer out to Nick Keizer, there's room for the tight end room to improve ahead of the 2021 season. The Chiefs also have Sean Culkin on a futures/reserves contract.

What can the Chiefs do?

Still in the first days of free agency, several good options are off the board, but there are still enticing ones out there. After the signing of Curtis Samuel to the Washington Football Team, my favorite option for the Chiefs is former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster. He has not been the same since the departure of Antonio Brown, when he's had to be a number one receiver, but last year, he was arguably a number two again and he was much better than he was in 2019.

If Smith-Schuster just fits better as a No. 2, he'd fit in well in Kansas City and I could easily see him thrive. If you can get 1,426 yards with old Ben Roethlisberger, you can probably achieve anything with prime Patrick Mahomes. 

Two key early-round draft prospects I would love to see the Chiefs add at wide receiver are Rashod Bateman and Tylan Wallace, who look like fantastic WR2 options for years to come. Bateman has had 1,692 yards and 13 touchdowns over 16 games played in the last two seasons for Minnesota, while Wallace has had 3,303 yards and 26 touchdowns over 30 games in the last three seasons with Oklahoma State. Bateman is more of the skilled route-runner that gets open, while Wallace is more of the type of put a corner on a poster, but both guys are truly gifted and I think both would greatly improve the Chiefs' offensive capabilities. 

Jaelon Darden has numbers that will knock your socks off. In nine games played in 2020, Darden had 1,190 yards and 19 touchdowns for North Texas. That's right, he averaged more than two touchdowns per game. He had four games of three touchdowns and one game of four touchdowns against UTEP. While certainly not the strongest competition, that is stunning production against any level. Another productive receiver here is Marlon Williams, who put up 1,037 yards and 10 touchdowns over eight games played for UCF. There is the potential to get a good receiver here if the Chiefs prefer to prioritize other positions in the first two days of the draft.

Cade Johnson is almost a no-brainer if he goes this late and the Chiefs are on the clock. Johnson did not play in 2020 thanks to the FCS season being moved to the spring, but his two prior seasons were great, exceeding 1,200 yards in each. He also had 25 total touchdowns in the two seasons combined. FCS, sure, but Johnson has also impressed in his pre-draft work against some good FBS talents. He could be a low-key great late-round slot receiver for years to come. 

At tight end, it's tough to look at the draft options and see any real reason to invest unless Kyle Pitts just came falling about 15 spots in the draft. I would avoid it entirely or wait until the third day. That is, unless the cost for Zach Ertz isn't too high, but I doubt that.

In total, the top moves I'd like to see at these position groups are no more moves at running back or a late-round flyer on a good talent (Edwards-Helaire, Williams and Thompson should be enough to suffice), either signing JuJu Smith-Schuster or drafting Rashod Bateman/Tylan Wallace to take the second wide receiver spot (with Hardman as the third receiver and Pringle as the fourth receiver) and then adding a late-round or undrafted tight end to battle Blake Bell for the second tight end spot, unless Ertz is affordable and can be attained for a reasonable deal.

For more Kansas City Chiefs analytics and analysis, follow @SIChiefs and @WichitaChiefSam on Twitter.

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