It is now official as of 11:24 a.m. (CST) on August 26, the Kansas City Chiefs have re-signed veteran wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster — throwing a major wrench in just about every KC 53-man projection at his position.
After the transaction, The Athletic’s NFL insider Dianna Russini joined forces with Chiefs beat reporter Nate Taylor and staff editor Amos Morale III to publish a sourced article on what this means for the rest of the Kansas City WR corps.
“By adding Smith-Schuster, the Chiefs could feel more comfortable with carrying just six receivers on their initial 53-man roster,” The Athletic reported, noting later that the signing “also all but assures that Kadarius Toney, the former 2021 first-round pick, will not be on the Chiefs’ initial roster.”
The same can likely be said about fan favorite bubble candidate Nikko Remigio, although The Athletic did not list him by name in this article. They did mention two other big-name pass-catchers who appear to be on the hot seat after the Smith-Schuster addition.
“Before this move, the Chiefs were expected to keep seven receivers — likely having the final two spots going to Skyy Moore and Justyn Ross — to have proper depth at the position following [Hollywood] Brown’s sternoclavicular dislocation on the opening snap of the preseason, an injury that could force him to miss the season opener,” The Athletic relayed.
Now, Moore and Ross’ status are less clear.
Chiefs Reporter Believes Skyy Moore Is More Likely to Survive Roster Cutdown Than Justyn Ross, Nikko Remigio & Kadarius Toney
A-to-Z Sports Kansas City reporter Charles Goldman weighed in on the Chiefs’ ever-changing situation at wide receiver on X, hinting that he believes Remigio and Ross will be cut as a by-product of the Smith-Schuster acquisition.
The managing editor was less certain about Moore, however, responding to a fan: “Toney [as a cut], sure. Can’t agree with you on Moore, though. Remigio appears to be too green on offense. Ross is still lining up wrong three years into this thing.”
Goldman’s argument for the Chiefs keeping Moore has stemmed from three things — special teams impact, his knowledge of the playbook and KC limiting him during the preseason finale.
It also doesn’t hurt that Kansas City spent a second-round pick on Moore in 2022.
Chiefs OC Matt Nagy Pushed for JuJu Smith-Schuster Reunion: Report
As for the main reason why Smith-Schuster is back at Chiefs practice on August 26, Sports Radio 810 WHB host Jason Anderson reported that the decision had a lot to do with offensive coordinator Matt Nagy rather than a potential Rashee Rice suspension.
“Was told Nagy wanted JuJu as soon as he was released,” Anderson said on X. “This isn’t ‘specifically’ connected to anything related to Rashee and a potential suspension. (Could be a nice insurance policy but JuJu would be signed regardless). Matt Nagy had a big say in bringing JuJu back to the Chiefs.”
The deal will also only cost KC a “[veteran] minimum contract” according to 33rd Team NFL insider Ari Meirov, so there’s not much risk so long as the Chiefs are comfortable cutting wide receivers like Toney, Remigio and potentially Ross or Moore.
“The Chiefs know exactly how to use Smith-Schuster, a possession receiver who can devour zone coverages with Patrick Mahomes and run routes alongside Travis Kelce,” The Athletic Staff wrote during the aforementioned article. “The question, though, is this: Can Smith-Schuster replicate the production he had in 2022?”
“The Chiefs will likely try to manage Smith-Schuster’s snaps,” they continued, “but his transition back to the roster and the playbook should be pretty smooth with the team still having 10 days to prepare for the season opener against the Baltimore Ravens.”
Like Heavy.com’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy.com
The post Chiefs’ JuJu Smith-Schuster Signing ‘All but Assures’ WR Cut: Insider appeared first on Heavy.com.
