Grading Chiefs’ selection of Western Michigan WR Skyy Moore at pick No. 54
The Kansas City Chiefs selected Western Michigan WR Skyy Moore at pick No. 54 in the second round of the 2022 NFL draft.
Below you will find the Chiefs Wire staff’s reactions, grades and initial thoughts for this pick:
Charles Goldman's grade: A
AP Photo/Al Goldis
Fair warning: Moore is a draft crush of mine, so this is going to be a bit of a homer take. I think this is a great player to match what the Chiefs already have at the WR position. He wins with his route running, footwork, head fakes and just by generally having great knowledge of the game.
Moore isn’t the biggest receiver, but he catches everything that comes his way (only 3 drops on 125 targets last season). He’s got solid 4.4s-speed. I don’t know how much he will contribute as a rookie being that Andy Reid’s system is notoriously hard to learn. But I think we’ll look back on this as a very good pick.
Nick Roesch's grade: B-
AP Photo/Al Goldis
George Pickens and Alec Pierce were a couple of favorites of mine, so the Chiefs selecting Skyyy Moore right after Pickens and Pierce got taken was a little bit of a gut punch. I don’t have anything against Moore, he’s a crisp route runner with decent speed. He was highly productive at Western Michigan and should contribute for K.C. right off the bat.
What I’m discouraged about with the Moore selection is that while he’ll make plays, he doesn’t have a WR1 ceiling like Pickens and Pierce do. I was also looking forward to continuing the trend of the Chiefs adding big receivers as they have with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marques Valdes-Scantling.
John Dillon's grade: B
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
I don’t love this pick given that a premium talent at linebacker was available, but Skyy Moore will fill an immediate need on the Chiefs offense and is a fair value with the 54th overall selection. Thankfully, there is a glut of defensive talent that has fallen in the first 55 picks, so my dream of a complete overhaul on that side of the ball is still in play. Moore is worth the gamble, even if he isn’t the most polished receiver in the class.
Coming out of Western Michigan, he’ll need to adjust to the pro game a bit before becoming a go-to target. He hasn’t faced the best of the best too many times but dominated the lesser competition throughout his college career. Patrick Mahomes will surely benefit from Moore’s skillset, and with Juju Smith-Schuster in the mix to mentor the Chiefs’ new rookie, the offense looks to have added a key component in the second round.
Wesley Roesch's grade: C-
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
I love the position and value, but I’m torn on the pick. The Chiefs had their pick of receivers George Pickens or Alec Pierce at pick no. 50 and decided to trade down to 54. Pickens and Pierce, two guys I had ahead of Moore, were selected right before the Chiefs’ selection at 54.
Moore isn’t a bad pick. He runs good routes and will be a nice slot option for Patrick Mahomes to throw to underneath. But I am concerned about his size (5-foot-10) and his lack of yards-after-catch ability. I’m also not sure if his ceiling is any higher than a no. 2 receiver.
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