On Wednesday, the Kansas City Chiefs’ offense became very different — and a lot less explosive. The trade of Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins not only takes Patrick Mahomes’ most explosive receiver away; it also changes the entire geometry of Kansas City’s offense in that Hill has speed you can’t consistently cover — you have to create an entire defensive architecture just to rein it in as much as you possibly can.
It’s why Mahomes faced far more two-deep coverage in 2021 than any other NFL quarterback, and without Hill in the picture — compounding that unpleasant reality that there’s nobody else on the roster who can approximate what Hill does — every NFL defense that has had to try and solve this calculus test is now breathing easier.
Now, it’s up to head coach Andy Reid and general manager Brett Veach to create a new math. There’s no receiver in free agency who is capable of approximating Hill’s effect on a defense, which leaves the draft, and some interesting options. Ohio State’s Chris Olave reminds me of a souped-up Cooper Kupp with his deep speed and route awareness, and I think he’d be an ideal fit in Reid’s schemes. But the Chiefs would likely have to trade up to get Olave, and while they now have the 29th and 30th overall picks in the 2022 draft as part of the Hill trade (they already had the 30th pick), they might not want to constrict their options at that part of the first round.
There is an even better option, though it comes with a bit of risk.
Alabama receiver Jameson Williams, who absolutely housed the NCAA with 79 catches for 1,572 yards and 15 touchdowns in 2021, suffered a torn ACL in the College Football Championship against Georgia. Were it not for that injury, Williams would likely be WR1 on most boards because of his route-running and field awareness, sure, but the thing that elevates Williams on tape is the constant vertical/speed threat that stress every defense the Crimson Tide faced — even Georgia’s dominant squad.
More importantly, Williams has examples on tape of doing nearly everything Hill has done — at a very high level.
