Jalen Royals’ strange rookie year should have Chiefs fans concerned

A fourth-round pick out of Utah State, Jalen Royals entered the NFL with significantly more pre-draft momentum than his draft slot suggests.

Widely viewed as one of the premier pass-catchers in the 2025 class, and a prospect who consistently won during the all-star circuit and validated his tape during the pre-draft process, his slip into the early stages of Day 3 was less about ability and more about the league’s shifting valuation and depth at the position.

For Kansas City, it looked like a value pick, one aligned with their recent trend of betting on versatile, physical pass catchers. Yet through Week 16, Royals remains one of the most underutilized offensive players on the roster.

After being absent through the first three weeks of the season, he began seeing limited snaps in the following month. Since then, his offensive involvement has virtually disappeared, accruing just three offensive snaps since Week 7, all of which came this past week against the Tennessee Titans.

Even more striking: he has yet to see a single target in the Chiefs’ offense this season.

The lack of opportunity is surprising not because Kansas City lacks established names—Xavier Worthy, Hollywood Brown, Travis Kelce, JuJu Smith-Schuster, and Rashee Rice all command roles—but because the offense itself has been inconsistent and searching for answers.

Jalen Royals’ absence from the Chiefs’ offense raises questions about trust and a rookie season slipping away without answers.

At six feet flat and 205 pounds, Royals brings a skill set that typically earns early rotational snaps, at minimum. He can win on designated touches in the screen game, block effectively on the perimeter, and create after the catch—traits that fit seamlessly into Kansas City’s spacing-based concepts.

At Utah State, he operated as a true WR1, handling a full route tree and dictating coverage, and that ability translated during Senior Bowl week, where he consistently overpowered opposing corners in one-on-one reps with physicality and pace.

For a Chiefs offense that’s leaned heavily on manufactured production and veteran reliability, Royals represents something different: upside. After all, they drafted him for that exact reason. His continued absence raises questions about trust, consistency, or simply a numbers crunch at the position. Still, as Kansas City looks toward the final two weeks and beyond, it becomes increasingly difficult to justify not exploring what Royals can provide in live game situations.

His rookie year has been quiet—unexpectedly so. But for Royals, the long-term outlook in Kansas City may still hinge on opportunity rather than ability.