Chiefs’ first impressions of Xavier Worthy — and the most promising part of his week

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladokun turned around during Sunday’s rookie minicamp practice, quickly attempting to find Xavier Worthy.

The first-round rookie receiver wasn’t just open, though; he also wasn’t where Oladokun was expecting.

“He spun the guy (his defender) like a top,” Oladokun said. “He was already 50 yards downfield, and this is right after me getting out of a play-fake. And so I sort of saw him and was like, ‘Oh, let me just get him the ball.’”

Oladokun put everything he had into the throw at the Chiefs indoor practice facility ... and it still wasn’t as much as he wanted.

The speedy Worthy was so clear in the secondary that he adjusted back to the underthrown pass, stopping in the middle of the field and retreating to catch the long bomb.

After the play, Oladokun gave Worthy a congratulatory slap on the shoulder pad for the route and reception.

“He ended up making a great catch for me too,” Oladokun said. “And so that’s going to be something I think he does really well on this offense.”

This past weekend’s three-day rookie minicamp was the first opportunity for Chiefs players and coaches to work with Worthy, the 28th overall pick who set an NFL Combine record with a 4.21-second time in the 40-yard dash.

Many said they left impressed with what Worthy displayed over that time.

“I thought he did a nice job picking things up and working through,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “We asked him to do a whole lot of stuff there. He was put in most of the primary spots. So it was good for him to get in there and move around a little bit.”

Perhaps the best sign for Worthy comes from a closer examination of Reid’s words.

Reid called Worthy a “sharp kid” on Monday, which was reflected by the fact that Worthy played multiple receiver positions during the team’s short minicamp.

Why is that so important? It’s a potential sign KC might be able to trust him early.

The Chiefs’ offensive playbook can be challenging to learn, with many past young receivers struggling with such pre-snap nuances as where to line up. Because of that, rookie Chiefs receivers typically play only a single receiver position in the offense initially. They work to get that role down before they become comfortable moving elsewhere.

Worthy might be ahead of that already. Chiefs general manager Brett Veach raved about Worthy’s intelligence after the Chiefs drafted him two weeks ago, and simply understanding assignment and alignment — at more than one receiver spot — could make for a quicker transition with the Chiefs than some past wideouts have had.

Reid did offer some early caution. What’s essential ahead, he said, is for rookies like Worthy to retain the information they learned this past weekend, as practices will speed up once more players arrive for organized team activities in two weeks.

The first look nonetheless was encouraging, with Oladokun among those who had high praise for Worthy.

“We drafted him in the first round for a reason. He’s a dawg,” Oladokun said. “I think you guys saw it this weekend.”

And that’s even without Worthy getting off to the best start.

On a windy Saturday, Worthy muffed multiple punts off the JUGS machine and from Chiefs punters with Reid standing nearby. That appeared to shake his confidence some, as he dropped a few more passes in individual drills before settling down over the rest of the session.

“People were dogging him for the first day,” Oladokun said. “That’s just, ‘Welcome to the league.’”

Worthy recovered the next two outings, while especially attacking day two of minicamp. On one route, he had a nasty release off the line of scrimmage that left a defender on the turf; though the ball wasn’t thrown to him, the offensive sideline erupted.

“He’s a great receiver,” said Chiefs sixth-round pick Kamal Hadden, who went up against Worthy multiple times. “The speed is one thing, but I feel like he runs great routes.

“He’s a great route runner. He’s a guy that can get open. And I feel like he’s a guy that’s gonna make a lot of plays in this league.”

Worthy also made the deep catch over the middle, which only reinforced what Oladokun believed about the receiver heading into the weekend.

“You may just have to get the ball out a step or two earlier,” Oladokun said. “This guy runs 4.21, so definitely got to adjust with that.”