KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Big things were expected for Xavier Worthy in his second season with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Instead, he got knocked from the game on the third snap in the Chiefs’ season opener Friday night against the Los Angeles Chargers in São Paulo, Brazil.
Worthy, who the team dubbed questionable to return with a shoulder injury before ruling him out early in the second quarter, collided with teammate Travis Kelce as the duo ran shallow crosses on third-and-6 from the Kansas City 28-yard line.
The 6-foot-5, 250-pound Kelce obliterated the 5-foot-11, 165-pound Worthy, knocking him from his feet before he landed hard on his right shoulder.
Worthy exited the field with a towel over his head to have the joint x-rayed, according to the game broadcast, which can be seen on KSHB 41.
As a rookie, the speedy Worthy led all Chiefs wide receivers with 59 catches for 638 yards and tallied a team-best six receiving touchdowns. He also rushed for three touchdowns, leading Kansas City with nine touchdowns overall.
One of the few bright spots in last season's Super Bowl LIX loss, Worthy was expected to be an integral piece as the Chiefs sought to re-establish the big-play, explosive offense that marked Patrick Mahomes’ first few seasons as a starting quarterback.
Instead, he’s sidelined early for a Kansas City wide-receiver group already depleted by Rashee Rice’s six-game suspension.
Worthy snagged eight catches for a game-high 157 yards with two touchdowns in the Super Bowl loss.
Friendly fire also allowed the Chargers to claim an early lead when linebacker Drue Tranquill bumped cornerback Trent McDuffie in coverage on a crossing route near the goal line, allowing Quentin Johnson to get free in the end zone for a 5-yard touchdown and 7-0 first-quarter lead.
The Chiefs have won seven consecutive games against the Chargers and are 19-3 against San Diego/Los Angeles since the start of the 2014 season.
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