The Kansas City Chiefs are acclimating their new players to rookie minicamp over the course of the next three days. Everyone will have the opportunity to create a positive first impression on coaches and their peers, regardless of whether they are undrafted free agents or early-round picks in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Xavier Worthy, the 28th overall pick, is the group’s star player. The newest wide receiver to join Patrick Mahomes’ roster has a lot to learn but also a lot of potential if everything goes well in minicamp and beyond.
Worthy is well-known for his quickness and capacity to blow a defense apart, but he is aware that his duties in the NFL will need more.
Xavier Worthy speaks about Chiefs and his role
In response to a question on Saturday regarding his limitations as a Z receiver against his versatility, the 21-year-old stated that he is able to roam throughout the formation. Xavier said,
“To answer that, I really feel like I can’t just answer [it] like just a true Z receiver,” “I feel like I played every position at Texas — I really played mostly X at Texas. Just being able to have that versatility and play everything, I feel like it just doesn’t limit me to any position.”
Numerous people have projected Worthy for that slot or Z role in the NFL because of his faster speed profile and thinner build. Having said that, he did play a significant amount of wide receiver for Texas in his final season in college. The former Longhorn recorded 548 snaps aligned wide and 282 in the slot, per Pro Football Focus. With Marquise “Hollywood” Brown and Rashee Rice, some overlap is only to be expected, but the experience is there.
Andy Reid, the head coach, has experience coaching athletes with physiques similar to Worthy’s.
For instance, DeSean Jackson, who played for Reid with the Philadelphia Eagles, experienced tremendous success during that period. After the NFL Draft, Reid compared Worthy to Tavon Austin, and Worthy admitted that he had watched tape of players like Jackson to learn from their style. There are two things about Jackson that catch his attention. Worthy said,
“Just his punt return and his ability to make a play after the catch,” “And how he understood the leverage for deep routes, I feel like he had really good leverage. I think he has the record for longest touchdown, so just his ability to understand leverage on deep routes.”
Many were concerned about Worthy’s weight when he entered the draft. He checked in at 165 pounds during the NFL Scouting Combine, so some people assumed he would struggle against physical or aggressive coverage from defenders if he plays at that weight. He’ll have to come up with inventive ways to adjust when he must unavoidably spend time lined up on the line of scrimmage.