For years, Kansas City Chiefs fans have been waiting for the Justyn Ross breakout. The former Clemson star signed with KC as an undrafted free agent in 2022 after a neck and spine injury derailed his college career. In training camp and the preseason for two straight years, though, Ross had Chiefs fans dreaming of his potential. As that hasn’t ever materialized in the regular season, however, Kansas City might’ve now brought in a rookie, Utah State product Jalen Royals, who’s about to take Ross’ spot on the roster.
Royals, who was selected in the fourth round of this year’s draft, is about to begin his official Chiefs journey at rookie minicamp. Even as a Day 3 selection, though, the expectations are high for the pass-catcher. He was a versatile big-play threat for the Aggies and one of the most consistently productive receivers in college football for years.
Though the Chiefs have reshaped their wide receiver corps over the past couple of years, Royals represents what this team might need, especially Rashee Rice’s uncertain future due to both health and his off-field legal situation. At one point, fans probably hoped that Ross would be part of the solution there. Instead, he might be pushed out by the actual solution — especially at this point of Ross’s career.
Despite several preseason hype trains, Ross has failed to make any real impact in meaningful games for the Chiefs. All told, he’s appeared in 12 games over the past two seasons but has caught only six of his 12 targets for 53 yards and no touchdowns. I’m not sure you can even refer to that as a pedestrian level of production.
Contrasting that, Royals was a monster, albeit in the Mountain West, as he comes into the league. In 20 games over the past two seasons at Utah State, he totaled 126 receptions for 1,914 yards (15.2 yards per reception) and 21 touchdowns. He also led all FBS receivers in 50+ yard plays over the past two seasons as well, which came as both a downfield threat and a nightmare to defend in space.
Obviously, Mountain West football isn’t the NFL. At the same time, the Chiefs are like any NFL team in always trying to play the age game. Ross has now spent three years in the building and has failed to ultimately carve out a role for himself despite any amount of hype from fans. Royals, meanwhile, is substanitally younger and might simply have a skill set as a smart, crafty route-runner with juice than the big-bodied Ross.
At the end of the day, Ross appears to be losing the numbers game after the Royals addition. Rice, Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown, Royals and JuJu Smith-Schuster appear already entrenched. That leaves Ross battling with Skyy Moore and Tyquan Thornton battling it out for the final spot. Maybe Ross earns that No. 6 spot but he’s firmly on the cut line, without question.
