The Kansas City Chiefs had new wide receiver contributors in their Week 6 win over the Los Angeles Chargers. With Tyquan Thornton on injured reserve and Rashee Rice out with a hamstring injury, Kansas City leaned more on practice squad wide receiver Andrew Armstrong, rookie wide receiver Cyrus Allen, and second-year wide receiver Jalen Royals than in any game this season.

Royals played 45 offensive snaps, trailing only Xavier Worthy among the team’s receivers. Armstrong played 42 offensive snaps, nearly 70 percent of the team’s total. Allen played only 15 percent of the offensive snaps, but he made the most of his opportunities.

Speaking to the media after the game, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes discussed his young receivers’ performances. As the quarterback’s confidence in these players grows, it raises the question of whether they can be part of the solution as the team will be without Thornton for an extended period.

“Yeah, they did good,” Mahomes said. “They played fast. There were some learning moments here and there, but at the end of the day I thought they played hard. They played fast. They blocked when they needed to block, and they made the catches whenever they got the ball thrown their way, and so they’ll continue to get more and more involved in the offense, and obviously, not having the guys out there, it’s accelerated their growth a little bit, but I always have a lot of confidence in those guys.”

It was a good start for the young players as their roles begin to ramp up. Rice could be back as early as Week 7 against the Seattle Seahawks. Even so, Kansas City still has some things to figure out at the position.

Andrew Armstrong earns trust in his first real week of practice reps

Perhaps the biggest surprise of Week 6 was Armstrong, who took WR3 snaps behind Worthy and Royals. Chiefs HC Andy Reid told reporters on Monday that Armstrong nearly made the 53-man roster during roster cuts.

“Yeah, I thought when it came down to cut time and all that, I thought (WR Andrew Armstrong) he was that kid that was right on that border of being a practice squad guy or a roster move guy,” Reid said. “And so, I had high expectations for him, but he did a nice job for us, most importantly, and he did a nice job on special teams likewise. So, he’s a good football player.”

Armstrong said this was his first practice week of the 2026 NFL season with real repetitions. He’d spent his time on the scout team to this point. This week of practice was about earning trust.

“It was great,” Armstrong said after the game. “Just going out there in practice, earning the trust from the quarterback, earning the trust from coaches, earning the trust from my teammates. And just making sure that we go out there and I can trust them, they can trust me, and it was great.”

The stat sheet shows only one reception on two targets for 13 yards, but Armstrong ran the third-most routes of any Chiefs receiver with 24. He served as one of the team’s primary perimeter receivers. What stood out most was one of the traits that also defined his preseason: his run-blocking ability.

Armstrong wasn’t only stonewalling defenders. On a couple of occasions, he planted them in the dirt.

Chiefs rookie WR Cyrus Allen makes his targets count

Allen had limited opportunities against Los Angeles, playing just nine offensive snaps. Leading into the game, expectations were that he might take on a larger role. Instead, his usage was about the same as before the injuries to Thornton and Rice.

That said, Allen caught his first passes of the 2026 NFL season, finishing with two catches on two targets for 27 yards. He also drew a pass interference penalty that gave the Chiefs positive field position. When Allen was on the field, he was being targeted. The message leading up to the game was that Mahomes trusted him, and that showed on Sunday.

“They know I can make plays and stuff,” Allen said after the game. “Just being very intentional on things that I do, and just being the next guy up and being ready.”

His 23-yard reception on first-and-20 in the fourth quarter is the best example of that trust. Mahomes threw the ball across the middle of the field with a linebacker trailing in coverage. The pass was fantastic, and Allen’s execution on the grab helped the Chiefs extend their lead and put the game firmly out of reach.

Allen feels like a rising player. He could see more opportunities come his way as he keeps making plays.

What’s next for the Chiefs’ receiver room

A tough Week 7 matchup against the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks awaits. It stands to reason that both Armstrong and Allen could get more chances to make an impact and prove they’re part of the solution. For now, the Chiefs will keep sorting through their wide receivers as they figure things out for the rest of the 2026 NFL season. If Armstrong and Allen keep making plays and putting it on tape, their contributions could be limitless. Week 6’s win only scratched the surface of what both players can do in Kansas City.