Just In: “Impact of Hollywood Brown’s Injury on KC’s WR Depth — Is a Reunion with a Former WR1 Possible?”

If the Chiefs have to begin the 2024 season without Hollywood Brown, how does that impact the wide receiver room? Could KC find stability with an old friend?

Following Marquise “Hollywood” Brown’s sternoclavicular injury suffered on the first play of the Kansas City Chiefs’ first preseason game of 2024, the team’s projected No. 1 wide receiver is going to “miss some time,” according to head coach Andy Reid. How does Brown’s injury impact the Chiefs’ crowded wide receiver room, and could it lead to the return of a familiar face?

Let’s start with the roster-space issue that Brown’s injury exacerbates. In addition to Brown, it seems that the other locked-in wide receivers are Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy and Justin Watson. There’s still a chance Rice is suspended by the league, but as the regular season approaches, it seems increasingly plausible that Rice may not face league discipline until he goes through the legal process. Meanwhile, there isn’t much the Chiefs can do with Brown’s roster spot while he recovers, assuming he misses at least Week 1. Even if Brown were to be placed on the injured reserve list, which currently seems unlikely due to the fact he would be sidelined for the first four weeks of the season, he would still have to be on the team’s initial active 53-man roster. Barring a suspension for Rice, that makes four finalized wide receiver roster spots, with six or maybe seven total WR spots available.

What does all that mean for the Chiefs’ receivers? I think it helps secure the roster spot of one current Chief and makes a potential reunion with another a bit more enticing.

For the current member of the roster: Mecole Hardman may have his spot locked up. Hardman is entering his sixth year with the Chiefs (after starting last season with the New York Jets) and re-signed with KC late this offseason. In some ways, the now-veteran Hardman felt like Rice and Worthy insurance, providing KC with a player who can do a variety of useful things in Andy Reid’s offense while the rookie got up to speed and if the second-year player was suspended. While Worthy has looked explosive in training camp and Rice may dodge his suspension in 2024, Hardman’s insurance policy can now extend to Brown.

Right now, I’d narrowly bet on the Chiefs sticking with their younger group and trusting Hardman and Watson to step up in Brown’s potentially brief absence. However, if Rice does get news from the league while Smith-Schuster is still available, I’d make that call in a heartbeat.