Andy Reid Backs KC Chiefs WR Skyy Moore Despite Struggles This Season
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About halfway through the fourth quarter of the Kansas City Chiefs' Sunday afternoon game against the Denver Broncos, the offense faced a fourth-and-2 from the Denver 26-yard line. Taking a shotgun snap and letting the play develop, quarterback Patrick Mahomes ultimately chucked up a pinpoint pass down the left side of the field to second-year wideout Skyy Moore. Moore lost track of the football and ultimately couldn't come down with the pass in the end zone, pumping the brakes on the Chiefs' attempted comeback.
The former second-round pick has caught a lot of flak for the failed conversion, adding to what's already been a rough sophomore campaign for him. Despite that, head coach Andy Reid praised Moore on Wednesday when he spoke to the media.
"Skyy's doing well, we're just rotating a lot of guys in there," Reid said. "So... opportunities. I mentioned the one throw, I think you guys probably all get that on your computers there. You get that arm yanked down [and] it ends up being a one-armed catch. He took a lot of heat for that. But for the most part, Skyy's doing a heck of a job for us, so just keep him growing."
Although he's second among all Kansas City wideouts with 323 snaps played this season (59.3%), Moore hasn't produced like it. He's tied for third on the team in targets and ranks sixth in receiving yards and seventh in total receptions. Of all Chiefs with at least 10 targets this year, his 48.1% success rate is seventh. Under those same parameters, his catch percentage of 51.9% is dead last.
Things don't get much better when expanding to an advanced stats outlook. According to Pro Football Focus data, Moore is fifth among Chiefs wideouts in yards after catch per reception at 4.2. On a yards per route run (Y/RR) basis, his 0.83 mark ranks fifth as well. Out of all 121 NFL wideouts with at least 10 targets this season, his Y/RR ranks 105th. His passer rating when targeted, 54.6, ranks 112th. Something clearly isn't working.
While Moore has undoubtedly struggled in 2023, he's been far from the only receiver on the team to do so. Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Kadarius Toney, both expected to have big roles entering the year, have regressed from their 2022 forms. The Chiefs' offense remains one of the better ones in the league, yet many are still wanting more due to there being a surplus of underwhelming performances. Red zone woes, turnovers and more have held Kansas City back from achieving even more success. Moore is a part of that equation, but Reid is confident that some patience will allow everyone to get back on track.
"Yeah, so listen, we're going to be OK there," Reid said. "We just [need to] keep getting better all the way along. It's not just a wide receiver thing — it's all of us. A week ago, we were saying how good they did. So just keeping the consistency going on the offensive side is what we need to do all the way around, not just the wide receivers."
