Kansas City Chiefs need Sammy Watkins to live up to contract

In his second year with the Kansas City Chiefs, wide receiver Sammy Watkins needs to start living up to his contract in Andy Reid‘s offense.

The Kansas City Chiefs made a big splash in 2018 free agency as they inked former fourth overall pick Sammy Watkins to a lucrative deal. KC signed the wide receiver, who had previously spent three seasons with Buffalo and one with the Los Angeles Rams, to a three-year deal worth $48 million. Through the first year of the contract, though, Watkins’ hasn’t looked like a $16 million per year player.

Watkins missed six games for the Chiefs last season and, frankly, was not all that productive when he was on the field. The wideout notched just 40 receptions on 55 targets for 519 yards and three touchdowns. Perhaps even more curious, Watkins posted just a 13.0 yards per reception average, the worst mark of his career by more than two yards.

Despite how prolific the Chiefs offense was last season, Watkins was not a vital part of that, even when he was on the field. As he enters the second year of his deal in Kansas City, though, he needs to take a step forward.

Given the situation regarding Tyreek Hill and the fact that Kareem Hunt was already released last season, the Chiefs offense could be looking for guys to step up and replace a ton of production for their offense. In an ideal world, the wide receiver making $16 million per year would be the guy that could step up and do that.

The first step for Watkins doing that, though, is him staying healthy. Recently, in an interview with SiriusXM NFL Radio, Watkins spoke about his current status and how he’s feeling in the 2019 offseason, noting that he’s trying to essentially speak full, healthy season into existence:

While the fact that Watkins’ confidence has not waned isn’t negligible, it doesn’t lessen the fact that Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs offense need him both on the field and taking a step forward in production. Without him, they could see some regression.

It is worth noting that Watkins’ pedestrian production in 2018 when he was on the field could be, in part, due to learning his third offense in as many years. With a sense of stability and comfort in Reid’s system with Kansas City, perhaps that will help him to be a more consistent performer come the 2019 season.

This is a crucial year for Watkins to prove that he can still be a first-round caliber wide receiver, though. Not only do the Chiefs need him to keep their offense humming at the level that led them to the AFC Championship Game last year, but Kansas City can also get out of his deal next offseason while only incurring $7 million in dead cap (per Spotrac).

Essentially, this is put up or shut up time for Sammy Watkins. The opportunity has now presented himself to rise to the occasion for a team that needs him and, if he fails to do so, the 2019 campaign could be his last with the Chiefs.