Kansas City Chiefs rookie WR Skyy Moore didn’t just make strides on special teams during the AFC Championship Game, he also made an impression on the offensive coaching staff too.
In perhaps the darkest hour of the game, with players like Kadarius Toney, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman exiting due to injuries, the team found themselves in a bind at the receiver position. There was a point in the game when Kansas City had just three healthy players remaining in Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Marcus Kemp and Moore.
Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy explained to reporters what the biggest challenge was with all of the receiver injuries and told a story about Moore stepping up to help alleviate those concerns.
“The biggest challenge is making sure we can get lined up,” Bieniemy said. “I have to talk about this because this just goes to show you the growth of this kid. There was a moment in time throughout that game when we threw Skyy (Moore) in the game and Skyy had to play a number of positions. I was talking to him about a particular play and he yelled at me and said a few words to me, I’m not going to mumble those (exact) words, but it went something like, ‘You just put me in. Just tell me the personnel and I’m going to make it right.’ And I said, ‘Fellas, we’re going to be OK.’ So, that was good to see.”
Moore’s greatest impact came on special teams, but that doesn’t downplay the importance of what he achieved on offense. He only had three receptions for 13 yards, but he was able to do his part. Whether that meant blocking up the run game or running the routes to get guys like Valdes-Scantling and Kemp open, he was able to fill in for his injured teammates and impress upon his coaches that he was reliable in that moment.
Bieniemy wouldn’t so much as admit that Moore would see a bigger role in Super Bowl LVII, but he did say everyone would be ready to play their part.
“The thing is, yes our guys will be ready,” Bieniemy said. “I’m talking about our players. Our guys are doing a heck of a job of preparing themselves. But we have a tremendous coaching staff, who is very, very resilient. We’re going to use our best personnel to our advantage so we can go out there and be as effective and efficient as possible.”
Whether we’re talking about Valdes-Scantling, Smith-Schuster and Toney or Moore, Kemp and Justin Watson — this receiver group is going to be prepared to step up and perform as needed on the biggest NFL stage.
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