When the Kansas City Chiefs take the field against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 6 of the 2026 NFL season, the team will be without its leading wide receiver, Tyquan Thornton.

The Chiefs placed Thornton on injured reserve after he suffered an ankle dislocation in the team’s Week 4 win over the Las Vegas Raiders. The big question heading into the Week 6 matchup: How will Kansas City replace Thornton?

Players and coaches have pointed to a number of the team’s options at wide receiver, along with other starters like Chiefs WR Xavier Worthy, as candidates to fill Thornton’s role on a one-to-one basis.

What if the answer isn’t about the wide receiver position at all? What if it’s about leaning into something the Chiefs have done extraordinarily well to start the 2026 campaign?

Eric Bieniemy’s answer pointed beyond the wide receiver room

Speaking to reporters at practice Thursday, Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy was asked whether players like WR Cyrus Allen are ready to rise to the occasion and fill in for Thornton. His answer wasn’t just about Allen. It covered virtually every pass catcher on the roster.

“Let me just say this: All of those guys need to be ready,” Bieniemy said. “Jalen (Royals) needs to be ready. Cyrus (Allen) needs to be ready. Nikko (Remigio) needs to be ready. My man X-Man (Xavier Worthy) needs to be ready. Noah Gray needs to be ready. Who else? Trav (Kelce) needs to be ready. All the backs need to be ready. And I say that I’m not trying to be an asshole about it, but everybody has to fill shoes, so it’s our job as a coaching staff, making sure that we’re putting our guys in position. But on top of that, making sure that we’re not leaving any stones unturned. We have a great roster of players that we appreciate and guys that we have had an opportunity to work with over a few months now, and so it’s time for them to step up to the occasion.”

What stood out to me was that Bieniemy mentioned tight ends Noah Gray and Travis Kelce. He mentioned the running back room. He didn’t mention TE Jake Briningstool, but I imagine he’s part of that conversation as well. If you ask me, the Chiefs’ real pivot could be to lean more heavily into the tight end position and their usage of 13 personnel.

How the Chiefs have fared in 13 personnel through 4 games

Heading into the 2026 NFL season, there was an expectation that 13 personnel usage would rise across the league. If you’re not familiar with the term, 13 personnel means one running back and three tight ends on the field.

Through the first four games, Kansas City ran 13 personnel on 26 of 252 offensive plays (10.3%), according to Sumer Sports. That ranks 11th out of 32 NFL teams and sits a bit above the league-wide rate of 8.7% (849 of 9,808 plays). The Rams, Bills, Cardinals, Bears, Packers, Falcons, Jaguars, Commanders, and Colts are among the teams ahead of them. Keep in mind that K.C. has played only four games ahead of its Week 5 bye.

The efficiency is where things get eye-opening. Of those 26 plays, 18 were runs and eight were passes. Here’s how they break down:

• Run plays: 0.392 EPA per play, 66.7% success rate, and 8.89 yards per play
• Pass plays: 0.224 EPA per play, 37.5% success rate, and 9.25 yards per play

Compare that to the rest of the offense. Out of other personnel groupings, the Chiefs are averaging about 4.8 yards per play on runs with roughly 0 EPA (Expected Points Added) per play. When they’ve thrown out of 13 personnel, they’ve been explosive. The sample size is too small to read too much into. Still, it tells me Kansas City has been successful in spurts and might be leaving some opportunities on the table in the passing game. A rushing attack this productive out of 13 personnel can also open things up through the air.

The Chiefs have the tight ends to make it work

We already know what Kelce is capable of. Gray is off to a strong start to the 2026 NFL season after a poor showing the season prior. Briningstool has loads of potential as a third tight end who’s been active on game days. Additionally, the Chiefs have TE Jared Wiley, who has been a healthy scratch through the early part of the season.

With one of their top wide receivers down and questions to sort out at that position, there’s no reason not to lean into this grouping a bit more. Expanding on something they already do well makes more sense than forcing wide receiver personnel into a role that doesn’t fit.

Thornton thrived by getting open against man coverage, stretching the field, and creating explosive plays. Replicating that skill set with the remaining receivers could be a tall order. Leaning on three tight ends against the Chargers might be the smarter way to keep the offense humming.