FRANKFURT, Germany -- The Kansas City Chiefs turned over their wide receiving group in the two seasons since trading Tyreek Hill. As they're preparing to face Hill and the Miami Dolphins on Sunday in Frankfurt (9:30 a.m. ET, NFL Network), here's a peek at how that's going: The Chiefs' wide receivers have 33 more catches and 171 more yards this season than Hill alone.
While the Chiefs did trade for Mecole Hardman Jr. two weeks ago, they are otherwise sticking with the receivers they have for the rest of the season. They declined to acquire a receiver at this week's trade deadline, instead remaining hopeful improvement will come from within.
"We're going to be OK there," coach Andy Reid said. "We just keep getting better all the way along. It's not just a wide receiver thing. It's all of us.
"A week ago we were saying how good they did, so we just keep the consistency going on the offensive side is what we need to do all the way around, not just wide receivers."
The Chiefs were dismal offensively in last week's loss to the Denver Broncos. They were held without a touchdown for only the third time with Patrick Mahomes at quarterback and had a season-low nine points.
A couple of big dropped passes by wide receivers contributed. One by Skyy Moore was in the end zone and cost the Chiefs a fourth-quarter touchdown.
The Chiefs' wide receivers are 18th in the league in catches (94) and 14th in yards (1,185). Those numbers aren't significantly different than what the wide receivers delivered in the first eight games last season, but the situation feels more desperate.
Though the Chiefs are 6-2, they've scored seven fewer points per game than at the same junction of the 2022 season.
"We've kind of built our identity through the season," Mahomes said. "Obviously this is a little slower than we have the year before, but we have a lot of young guys who have showed a lot of great flashes, so I know the talent is there. It's about how can we put those guys in the right position to go out and execute.
"It's little things in this league, and people think it's a big gap and we try to explain that if you don't execute those little things, these games are a lot closer than you're used to seeing. For us, we have to continue to get better and better each week and see where we can go from that."
The Chiefs heading into the season expected Moore, Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Kadarius Toney to be big contributors. That hasn't happened. They've combined for 45 catches, 504 yards and three touchdowns.
Valdes-Scantling has only 12 receptions, but a healthy 18.9 yards-per-catch average, the second-best of his career.
"There are going to be games where [opposing defenses] don't want me to get big plays and that's just the reality of it," Valdes-Scantling said. "They're going to do anything they can to stop me from going 1-for-80. They'll let Travis [Kelce] or whoever catch 10 balls before they let me catch one. That's just been the name of the game. I've been one of the better deep threats in the league my whole career. I take it with pride and I see the respect that I get from defenses across the league."
Moore emerged from training camp looking as if he would be the Chiefs' leading wide receiver, but since then often appears as if a stranger to Mahomes. Moore has just 14 catches on 27 targets. He is third among wide receivers in receptions and yards.
"Just do a better job of finishing the opportunities that I get," Moore said when asked what improvements he wants to make in the second half of the season. "When they come, just make the play.
"Never really satisfied. Like I said, there's more that I can get from my opportunities and just looking to build on that the rest of the season."
Rashee Rice has been the most productive of the wide receivers. He had one of the big drops against the Broncos but as a rookie leads the team's wide receivers by a wide margin in catches (30), yards (361) and touchdowns (3).
Rice's playing time has expanded in recent weeks, which means the Chiefs have bigger plans for him.
"I think he's doing a really good job of just doing what he's supposed to do and making the plays that he's supposed to make, not trying to be anything that he's not," Valdes-Scantling said. "You see a lot of rookies come in and try to do too much and can't figure out the right thing to do and the wrong thing to do. He's just been doing his job and it's been paying off for him.
"He's a quiet kid who listens to what he's told to do. He always wants to learn. He's always taking notes and it shows. Obviously, Pat trusts him to keep giving him the ball."