Josh Downs got his wish. The Indianapolis Colts not only honoured his request by trading the four-year wideout after a request-out, but they sent him where he wanted to go: the Kansas City Chiefs. Now, Downs has a shot at winning a Super Bowl, while the Colts begin a rebuild.
The Colts are in no better position than they were before trading Downs, because without Alec Pierce, no available wide receiver turns heads. The Chiefs are a much different reality, but still largely unproven with the likes of Xavier Worthy and Rahsee Rice.
An argument could be made that Downs's 2,494 receiving yards and 12 career touchdowns automatically make him Kansas City's best pass catcher, even though Rice is close behind in the numbers. In any case, Rice, along with the other Chiefs, couldn't be more thrilled to welcome Downs, and Downs couldn't be more thrilled to be a Chief.
Josh Downs shows love to the Indianapolis Colts but doesn't shy away from his excitement to join the Kansas City Chiefs
Both Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes are looking forward to getting Downs involved in the Chiefs' offense as soon as possible, and both have already spoken publicly about it, including Rice, Downs’s new receiver teammate.
“It's going to do a lot for the whole offense,” said Rice, according to Fox Sports. “He's going to be down the field, middle of the field, shallow routes. It's going to open up the run game. It's going to bring a lot more confidence to the receiver room as well.”
Downs indeed should help open up Kansas City's offense, given he's one of the top slot wideouts in the NFL, can go downfield or run short routes, and can run those routes like the best of them. It's been no secret that the Chiefs needed wide receiver help, so while they boost their group with Downs, he leaves his former team with one less.
After leaving Indianapolis, Downs spoke highly of his time there and did not seem to hold any grudges.
“I've got so much respect for the Colts, 2-6 or not. They drafted me. Showed love to me. I enjoyed my time,” Downs said Wednesday. “It's great to join a team like this with so much history, so much winning, in their past and even now.”
After spending his first three and a half seasons with the Colts, Downs got his first crack at being a No. 2 pass-catcher this season, after playing behind Pierce and Michael Pittman Jr. since being drafted. Now, the Colts are playing without the No. 1 and No. 2 targets they started the season with.
Where they go from here is a massive question mark, because Pierce remains on IR and has no return timetable. Unfortunately for Colts fans, they're likely to watch Downs' stats rise, and rise quickly, in Kansas City. He's in a significantly better situation all around.
That said, Downs has to come through now. He wanted a trade; he got it. Now, he has to make good on it and start putting up the type of numbers he did in his first two NFL seasons.
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