Who Should I Start? Jalen Royals or Dont'e Thornton Jr.

Sunday, August 23, 6:46 AM

A fourth-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Jalen Royals was a buzzy name throughout his first training camp with the team, and while that resulted in only two total catches as a rookie, there is still room for him to carve out a role in a receiver room in need of playmakers. While the camp hype crown has since been passed to 2026 fifth-round pick Cyrus Allen, it was Royals who led the team in targets, receptions, and yards in Saturday night's preseason loss to the Buccaneers. In a game where Chiefs backup quarterbacks Justin Fields, Garrett Nussmeier, and Chris Oladokun combined for only 130 passing yards, Royals accounted for more than a third of that total, catching all six of his targets for 51 yards. While the buzz around Allen appears warranted, Kansas City will be in search of contributions from all its young pass catchers. Royals could find early-season involvement as Rashee Rice continues to work his way back from offseason clean-up surgery to his right knee, while at the same time, 11-time Pro Bowl tight end Travis Kelce will turn 37 before the first month of the regular season has concluded.