The Kansas City Chiefs are calling around for wide receiver help, and the search comes with the trade deadline now only two weeks away. On Monday, Jeremy Fowler said Kansas City is at least checking what it could add after injuries thinned the position.
The timing matters because the Chiefs have been forced to play through a stretch of receiver trouble, including Tyquan Thornton’s dislocated ankle. Rashee Rice has also been out with a hamstring injury for the last three weeks, leaving Kansas City with fewer reliable options as it tries to steady a passing game that has been hit hard in recent weeks. Fowler said the club could look to add a piece in the next few weeks because of those injuries.
The reported interest followed a blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks on Monday, when Kansas City failed to reach the red zone and the injury picture looked even sharper. The Chiefs did not identify which receivers they might target, but the fact that they are already making calls suggests the front office is treating the position as a real need rather than a short-term inconvenience.
That urgency runs into one complication: Rice may not be gone much longer. Fowler said he should get back after missing the last three weeks, which gives the Chiefs a reason to wait before paying a premium for help. Andy Reid also asked people to focus on the players available right now, a reminder that the roster the Chiefs have on hand still has to carry them while the deadline clock keeps moving.
The Chiefs’ wider roster stress is not limited to receiver. Since the beginning of last season, Harrison Butker has missed 15 kicks, including 10 attempted field goals and five PATs, the most in the NFL during that span, and he said Sunday that his warmup “wasn’t great” before adding that he would try to fix it in the game. Kansas City can still wait and see on a trade, but the next move matters: if the team is going to add a receiver, the deadline is coming fast, and the closer it gets, the less room there is to keep hoping the current group will be enough.
