The Kansas City Chiefs’ struggles at wide receiver in 2014 were well-documented and they have acted fast in free agency adding Jeremy Maclin in the hopes of upgrading an underwhelming group. Re-united with former head coach Andy Reid, Maclin is coming off of a career year in Philadelphia where he earned a +9.1 overall grade to finish inside the top 15 wideouts.
What Chiefs fans will hope to see Maclin repeat in Kansas City is his touchdown total of 10 from a year ago after they saw their own receivers snag precisely zero touchdowns last season. Maclin produced big games in 2014 against the Cardinals, Texans and Redskins, topping 150 yards in each contest and collecting five of his touchdowns in those efforts.
Kansas City fans will hope that the Maclin we saw last season is the one they are getting moving forward after he underwhelmed from a performance stand point early in his career under Andy Reid. Maclin bucked a career trend by dropping only one pass last season having averaged at seven during his four years under Reid in Philadelphia.
One key to the Chiefs maximizing their investment in Maclin will be opening up the offense down the field. In five seasons in Philadelphia Maclin has caught 16 touchdown passes on deep targets and been targeted at least 20 times down the field every season since his rookie year; the Chiefs, however, didn’t target a receiver deep last season more than five times. Maclin is not a tackle breaker who can convert short passes into long gains (last seasons’ eight forced missed tackles were a career high thanks to five in one game against the Cowboys), so if they are to make the most of their investment they must open up the passing game.
© 2024 PFF - all rights reserved.