KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It was a scintillating afternoon of firsts for Kansas City Chiefs first-round pick Xavier Worthy.
He caught his first pass and first touchdown as a professional Saturday during a 24-23 loss against the Detroit Lions at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
“It was big just to be able to get that confidence and get everything going and get a rhythm going, so it was big for me,” Worthy said.
Joining the two-time reigning Super Bowl champions and being able to contribute right away, mastering coach Andy Reid’s complex offense and appeasing the league’s top quarterback Patrick Mahomes, presents a stressful challenge for any incoming rookie.
That’s also why Reid and Mahomes wanted to force feed Worthy, who caught three of six targets for 62 yards with a touchdown, in the Chiefs’ second preseason game.
“We had a couple different things in there to get him the ball just to get him started,” Reid said.
Worthy caught a 39-yard deep corner on the third snap of the game — and might have scored if he’d been able to keep his balance.
“The ball was coming at me kind of like off and, as a receiver, you just want to secure the catch,” Worthy said. “That was one of those, I was like, ‘Just let me secure it’ and not make any mistakes or drop it.”
On the next drive, Worthy caught a 7-yard pass then fumbled and recovered the ball.
Backup quarterback Carson Wentz targeted Worthy with both throws on the Chiefs’ third drive, completing a 1-yard pass and a 22-yard touchdown sandwiched around a short Carson Steele run.
“Being able to get a chance and understanding the little nuances of the game, I feel like that’s the biggest thing for me,” Worthy said.
Worthy said Mahomes, future Hall of Fame tight end Travis Kelce and the rest of the wide receivers have helped him get up to speed.
“There’s still little things here and there that we talk through and work through, but at the same time he doesn’t seem to make those same mistakes twice,” Mahomes said.
Worthy, who ran an NFL Combine-record 4.21-second 40-yard dash in Indianapolis last February, doesn’t have to make a catch to be a threat.
One play after his 39-yard reception early in the game, Worthy ran deep again, drawing defenders away from Justin Watson for a 20-yard gain.
“You all saw it in training camp and you could kind of see it already in the game — once you hit them over the top with that speed, it helps open up the whole entire football field,” Mahomes said. “... It opens up the entire offense, so it’s going to be big for us this year.”
With apologies to Jarrod Dyson, that's what speed do.
After the game Worthy admitted there may have been some illegal motion on his first catch. He came in motion and appeared to turn upfield before the snap.
“I might have,” Worthy said with a big laugh.
It won’t be the last time he has the last laugh this season.
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