Cyrus Allen’s rise in Kansas City has been one of the more interesting developments from the Chiefs’ draft and preseason, but the rookie receiver may be staring at a tougher path now that Josh Downs is in the mix.
Allen, the fifth-round pick out of Cincinnati, came into the season with some buzz after minicamp clips and a few eye-catching moments in all three preseason games. He also brought a college résumé that included 86 catches between Louisiana Tech and Texas A&M.
Since then, his role has grown steadily. He went from 10 snaps over the first four weeks to an average of 17 snaps per game over the last four.
He still hasn’t scored his first career touchdown, but he has caught five passes for 65 yards across three games and appeared to be building some trust with Patrick Mahomes.
That climb showed up in more than just the box score. Allen’s offensive snaps were trending up, Mahomes was looking his way more often, he picked up more special teams work by returning his first kickoff last week, and his average depth of target was moving in the right direction.
Then Downs entered the picture, and the question became simple: what does that mean for Allen?
The overlap between the two receivers is hard to miss. Andy Reid has long favored smaller, quicker wideouts who can move around the formation, and both Allen and Downs fit that mold.
Allen is 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds. Downs is 5-9 and 171.
Kansas City’s receiver room averages 6 feet, 1.5 inches in height, with Jeff Caldwell at 6-5 and Andrew Armstrong at 6-4 balancing out Xavier Worthy at 5-11 and Jalen Royals at 6-0.
Their athletic profiles line up too. Allen ran a 4.49-second 40-yard dash, while Downs clocked a 4.48. Both came into the league known for route running and work in the middle of the field.
That’s where the fit gets tricky for Allen. Downs has already been used heavily in the slot in Indianapolis, lining up there on 57.2% of his snaps and starting his route from the slot on 70% of passing plays, according to PFF. Allen’s usage has been nearly the same, with 48 of his 84 offensive snaps coming from the slot, or 57.1%.
There’s another layer here, too: kick returns. Allen only just started handling that job for Kansas City last week, but Downs has plenty of experience there. Before this season, Allen returned 12 kickoffs at Louisiana Tech for 247 yards, an average of 20.6 yards per return, and did not return any at Texas A&M or Cincinnati.
Downs has a longer return history. At UNC, he brought back 26 kickoffs during his sophomore and junior seasons for 286 yards, or 11.1 yards per return. Since being drafted in the third round in 2023, he has returned two kickoffs, both as a rookie, and 32 punts for 312 yards, an average of 9.8 yards per return.
Ideally, Downs won’t be stuck on return duty while he gets up to speed in Reid’s system. But if his offensive ramp-up takes time, Allen could still squeeze out some value before Downs starts taking away snaps in the slot.
The bigger issue for Allen is the same one that faces so many young receivers in Kansas City: Reid’s offense rarely gives rookies an easy launch. There are exceptions, and Rashee Rice’s 2023 season is the big one. Rice set franchise rookie records with 79 receptions, seven receiving touchdowns, 26 postseason catches, 262 postseason receiving yards, and 130 receiving yards in a playoff game against Miami.
But that kind of rookie impact has been the exception, not the rule.
Skyy Moore and Mecole Hardman both arrived with plenty of hype and didn’t come close to matching it. Worthy, who came in with the reputation of being the fastest man in the NFL, still finished his rookie year with 638 receiving yards, 104 rushing yards, 742 yards from scrimmage, and nine total touchdowns. That actually stands as one of the stronger rookie receiver seasons under Reid.
Moore had 250 receiving yards and 24 rushing yards as a rookie. Hardman posted 538 receiving yards, 17 rushing yards, and six touchdowns in 2019. Beyond that, the list gets thin fast: Jehu Chesson had two catches for 18 yards in 2017, Chris Conley had 199 yards and a touchdown in 2015, and Albert Wilson finished with 260 yards in Reid and Alex Smith’s second season together.
So Allen’s current line - five catches for 65 yards - is still modest, even if it projects to 138 receiving yards over a full 17-game season. That number is skewed by his quiet start, when he had just two targets for zero yards over the first four weeks. His production from Weeks 6 through 8 paints a better picture, but even that stretch only adds up to 16 receptions for 211 yards, and that was before Downs arrived.
Now the path forward is less clear. Allen could see his work over the middle shrink if Downs settles into the slot. Or he could keep finding chances on deeper routes, the kind Mahomes tried to create against the Jets on Sunday.
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