NFL Trade Rumors: Kansas City Chiefs Wide Receiver Hollywood Brown Suffers Shoulder Injury

The Kansas City Chiefs are facing new question marks in their receiving corps. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Chiefs wide receiver Hollywood Brown was discharged from a Jacksonville-area hospital after suffering a shoulder injury in Saturday's preseason matchup with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Chiefs WR Marquise “Hollywood” Brown, who suffered a dislocation of his sternoclavicular shoulder joint Saturday night, was discharged from a Jacksonville-area hospital this morning and now has been cleared to return to Kansas City.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 11, 2024

Brown suffered a dislocation of his sternoclavicular shoulder joint after logging one reception for 11 yards on the Chiefs' opening drive. He remained overnight at the hospital but has been cleared to return to Kansas City. Chiefs coach Andy Reid noted he expected Brown to miss time.

Brown joined the Chiefs on a one-year, $7 million deal earlier this offseason. He entered the league as the Baltimore Ravens' 25th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. He compiled a respectable 2361 receiving yards and 21 touchdowns over his first three seasons before eventually being traded to the Arizona Cardinals in 2022 for first and third-round picks.

That didn't quite work out. Despite a relationship with Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray dating back to their college careers at Oklahoma, Brown struggled with health and efficiency in his two seasons in Arizona. Over 26 appearances, he totalled a mere 1283 receiving yards and averaged a subpar 6.2 yards per target.

Brown was arguably the most significant addition to a Chiefs offense that struggled at times in 2023. Their 21.8 points per game in the regular season were their fewest since Reid took over the team in 2013, largely due to the struggles of a middling receiving corps.

If Brown is going to miss time, the Chiefs will be forced to rely even more heavily on young wideouts Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy. Rice is facing his own issues. As a rookie, Worthy's potential in the pros is uncertain.

The Chiefs proved last season they could win a Super Bowl even with a middling offense. Still, entering the regular season with this many question marks at one of the league's most important positions is hardly ideal. If the Chiefs are going to pull off a mythical championship three-peat, they'll need some combination of Brown, Rice, or Worthy to emerge as reliable targets. They're off to a rough start.