Josh Downs is on the move, and the Colts made sure his trade request was answered before the deadline.
Indianapolis sent the former UNC wide receiver to the Kansas City Chiefs on Tuesday, with the Colts receiving 2027 fourth- and fifth-round picks in return, according to multiple reports. Downs, a 2023 third-round pick out of Chapel Hill, lands with a team in the middle of a stretch-run push.
The move also reunites him with another former Tar Heel, Joshua Ezeudu, who the New York Giants traded to Kansas City on Aug. 26. Downs and Ezeudu were teammates at UNC in 2020 and 202.
Downs had asked out ahead of Week 8, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported, at a point when Indianapolis was 2-5 and had already dealt Quenton Nelson and DeForest Buckner. Since then, the Colts have also moved Keenan Allen to San Francisco as part of a teardown that followed the firing of General Manager Chris Ballard.
When the trade request became public, Downs spoke about the situation on Oct. 28 in the Colts locker room.
“I’m here today, but whatever comes my way comes my way,” he told reporters, per The Athletic.
In nine games and six starts, Downs finished with 33 catches for 354 yards and one touchdown. He also posted season Pro Football Focus grades of 68.0 offensive, 67.5 pass, 63.1 run and 62.5 run-block. In Sunday’s 27-13 home loss to the Dallas Cowboys, he caught three passes on six targets for 26 yards and played 49 offensive snaps.
This season, Downs had been working as Indianapolis’ slot receiver while Alec Pierce missed most of the year with a heel injury. He was in the final season of his rookie deal and carried a $4.2 million cap hit.
Kansas City, now 6-2, had been searching for help at receiver after injuries hit Rashee Rice and Tyquan Thornton early in the year. The offense has leaned heavily on Kenneth Walker III and the run game, but Rice has since returned and Thornton is expected back eventually. Downs now joins a pass-catching group that includes Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy, with Patrick Mahomes set to distribute the ball down the stretch.
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