Kansas City Chiefs: Albert Wilson becoming key X-Factor?

After star running back Jamaal Charles went down with a season-ending injury earlier this season, many were willing to fork the Kansas City Chiefs, but Andy Reid‘s squad hasn’t lost since Week 6, making them one of the scariest teams in the AFC.

Yesterday, the Kansas City Chiefs notched their 8th win of the season, avoiding an upset to the rival San Diego Chargers in a 10-3 victory. Alex Smith threw his first interception since Week 3 (!) and the offense struggled against a San Diego defense that is 27th in points per game allowed, but the Chiefs managed to prevail.

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The difference in this one? In a game that featured excellent defense from both teams, Chiefs wide receiver Albert Wilson provided his team with the critical play that put K.C. over the top. Facing no safety help, Wilson beat Chargers corner Steve Williams to the inside on a slant route before heading off to the races for a 44-yard touchdown, and he would finish the game with 87 receiving yards.

No player had more yards from scrimmage than Wilson in this game, so he was more than just an X-Factor for the Chiefs in this case; he was the difference. However, in the context of the remainder of the season, Wilson looks like a burgeoning X-Factor on a team that has already received a nice boost from the “next men up” in their backfield in Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware.

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We all know that No. 1 wide receiver Jeremy Maclin has been well-worth the hefty price tag, as the former Philadelphia Eagles star has 72 receptions, five touchdowns, and 77.9 yards per game this season. For a second straight season, Maclin has been one of the league’s most productive wide receivers, and he’s received plenty of help from elite tight end Travis Kelce, who is averaging 8.71 yards per target this year.

Having a third option, though, is huge for the Chiefs, and it looks like they might have found a playmaker in Wilson. He hasn’t caught more than four passes in a game this season, but both of his four-catch performances came against the San Diego Chargers. And while Wilson has just two touchdowns on the season, his team-high 14.6 yards per reception show that he is more than capable of using his tools to take it to the house.

While we’re talking about tools, Wilson has sub-4.45s wheels, and the Chargers secondary certainly caught a glimpse of that yesterday on his touchdown reception. With each passing week, Smith is doing a better job of getting the ball to his wide receivers vertically, and having a legit No. 1 receiver like Maclin (instead of a plodding possession type like Dwayne Bowe) has done wonders for the veteran signal-caller.

In fact, Smith’s 98.3 QB Rating on passes of at least 20 yards downfield is 8th in the NFL among quarterbacks with at least 50 deep passing attempts, as per Pro-Football Reference. Even though Maclin is undoubtedly the star of the Chiefs passing attack (and, without Charles, the offense as a whole), it’s important to remember that Wilson is the team leader in yards per reception and the owner of a pretty good 8.5 yards per target average.

And look, if the guy who nailed Allen Robinson’s and John Brown’s big seasons is willing to praise Wilson, then we all need to take notice.

The 5’9″, 200-pound receiver seems to be playing a bigger role in the Chiefs offense, and I wonder how encouraged the Chiefs are by the fact that his only recent “dud” performances came against the Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders. Deep threats who are only targeted three or four times per game, such as Wilson, will have several games with a low yardage output, but there will also be games, such as yesterday’s, where he proves to be the difference.

Nov 15, 2015; Denver, CO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Albert Wilson (12) runs a route in the second quarter against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Next week, the Chiefs will get to face one of the NFL’s weakest pass defenses in the Baltimore Ravens, and it will be interesting to see how many looks Wilson gets.

When the Chiefs run out of the shotgun, Wilson, who averages over 16 yards per catch in these situations, tends to get the most looks, and this could all play into Smith’s increased confidence as a deep passer in 2015.

Although the playoffs aren’t a lock for the Chiefs, it’s hard to bet against a team that is on such a hot streak, particularly when their next opponents are the Ravens, Cleveland Browns, and Raiders.

Outside of that Week 17 battle against Derek Carr‘s squad, which will be in Kansas City’s house, the other matchups are quite light. All three secondaries are also primed to being burned by a budding weapon like Wilson.

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This means that the Wilson-Smith connection will have three more confidence-boosting opportunities before a potential postseason run, and these three games come after what was undoubtedly Wilson’s best performance of the season.

If he can emerge as a real X-Factor and weapon, then the Chiefs offense should be a sneaky-good unit that other playoff teams won’t be able to underestimate in January.