Travis Kelce Sends Xavier Worthy to Medical Room After Nasty Collision in Season Opener

Travis Kelce and Xavier Worthy had to step up for the Kansas City Chiefs after Rashee Rice's suspension left team with few receivers.

Travis Kelce Sends Xavier Worthy to Medical Room After Nasty Collision in Season Opener

Xavier Worthy injured his shoulder after colliding with Travis Kelce (Image via BBQ Chiefs/SS/X/Imago)

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The Kansas City Chiefs are already thin at the receiver position and need Travis Kelce, Xavier Worthy, and the remaining players to step up and deliver in their season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers.

The game in Brazil was not going to be easy against a stout Chargers defense, knowing they play hard every snap, and would not give the Super Bowl LIX runner-up an easy run at them.

In the first drive of the game, the Chiefs started from their 34-yard line after a penalty pushed back a brilliant return from Tyquan Thornton. On the next two drives, the Chiefs tried to push the line of scrimmage, but could not make much of an impact.

On 3rd and 6 at their 28-yard line, the Chiefs deployed a slant route with Kelce and Worthy set to cross each other and confuse their defenders. The only problem was that one of them misjudged their break.

When Patrick Mahomes released the ball, he intended to hit the speedy 2nd-year receiver in stride. Instead, it was his superstar tight end’s 250lb body that bumped into the much lighter Worthy.

The blindside collision left the Texas alum writhing in pain as he lay on the field. Medical staff rushed to the scene and, after a while, helped him get off the field with a towel over his head.

Soon, he was ushered to the medical room from where ESPN’s Insider, Adam Schefter, learnt that Xavier Worthy suffered a shoulder injury and was questionable to return. A while later, he was ruled out of the game.

Chiefs down to just 3 wide receivers after Xavier Worthy’s injury

After Xavier Worthy left the game, the Kansas City Chiefs’ passing game stuttered to a standstill. Rashee Rice is out due to suspension, and rookie Jalen Royals is out due to injury.

This leaves Patrick Mahomes with just Marquise ‘Hollywood’ Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Thornton, and Travis Kelce as his only receivers. The latter has just 1 catch for 10 yards and has been targeted just twice.

Those numbers are eerily similar to his lackluster performances last season. However, it might be due to the Chargers’ outstanding defense, who have so far stifled their opponents’ passing attack, as the star quarterback had just 16 passing yards in the 1st quarter.

Smith-Schuster is the best receiver so far, averaging 10.8 yards per carry. But Brown has struggled, averaging a measly 4.8 yards on 8 targets. If these problems carry over into their next few games, the Chiefs might not enjoy the run they had last season.

Chiefs struggling to keep pace with Chargers

Before flying to Brazil, the Kansas City Chiefs knew they were about to face a Los Angeles Chargers team looking to improve on their decent performances from last season.

Patrick Mahomes after scrambling for a touchdown
Patrick Mahomes after scrambling for a touchdown (Image via Kansas City Chiefs/X)

Other than the loss of Xavier Worthy on the 1st drive and then the receivers’ struggles, the Chiefs as a whole could not get the ball deep into Chargers territory.

In the 1st quarter, all their drives ended in punts. In the 2nd quarter, they managed to score 2 field goals to match their opponents. Even then, the disappointment on the faces of Chiefs fans was evident, as they saw the offense stutter for most of the night.

In the 3rd quarter, only an 11-yard scramble from Patrick Mahomes gave his team its 1st touchdown of the night. But Harrison Butker missed the ensuing field goal, leaving them 1 point shy of the Chargers’ score.

On the next drive, Justin Herbert drove the Chargers 63 yards down the field before throwing an 11-yard pass to the returning Keenan Allen for a score that would increase their lead. The Chiefs’ task to win this game just became harder.

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