Chiefs' Worthy Has Post-Surgery Message to Detractors

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Xavier Worthy played 653 snaps in his second NFL season. He played 650 of them with a torn labrum.

Worthy soldiered through not just the torn labrum, but a dislocated left shoulder. He sustained both injuries in a friendly fire collision with 250-pound Travis Kelce on the season’s third snap, Sept. 5 against the Chargers in Brazil.

The wide receiver on Wednesday afternoon shared not only news of his successful surgery, but also a message for his detractors.

Successful surgery 🙏🏽

Coming for it all next year let’s work road to recovery ⛓️
— Z A Y 🖤 (@XavierWorthy) January 14, 2026

Worthy also battled an ankle injury most of the year, then missed the season-finale at Las Vegas with an illness. Throw in the normal weekly bruises associated with a violent, contact sport, and Worthy is certainly happy to be done with 2025.

Keep doubting me y’all are making a monster !
— Z A Y 🖤 (@XavierWorthy) January 14, 2026

Andy Reid on Worthy

“Yeah, he just goes 100 miles an hour,” head coach Andy Reid said in late October, after Worthy finally got off the injury report. “And I check on him during the game. Not as much at practice; I mean, we're not hitting him in practice. But I check on him during the game and he always tells me everything's fine. So, he doesn't want to be on any injury reports or anything.”

He was, however, hoping to appear on other reports, such as lists of Pro Bowlers or statistical leaders – especially after hitting his stride with Patrick Mahomes late in his rookie season. His most enticing play as a rookie was his 50-yard touchdown reception in the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl loss to Philadelphia.

Link to Worthy's Instagram post here.

Difficult season

Instead, Worthy finished with just 532 yards and one touchdown on 42 receptions, never really seeming on the same page with Mahomes. After the bye week in Denver, the quarterback and receiver were far apart on a deep ball that would’ve struck first blood in an important division game. The Chiefs wound up losing, 22-19.

They still managed to complete a few deep balls, including a 42-yard strike in Dallas on Thanksgiving.

worthy, mahome — Oct 7, 2024; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) celebrates with wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (9) after Worthy’s touchdown against the New Orleans Saints during the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Worthy’s most exciting and productive game of his second season actually was his return after the Week 1 injury, Sept. 28 against Baltimore. In a 37-20 victory, he had five catches for 83 yards and two carries for 38 yards, including a 35-yard burst.

He finished the year with 11 rushing attempts for 87 yards and returned punts for the first time in his NFL career, one return for 6 yards and two fair catches, Dec. 7 against Houston.

In regular-season games since selecting Worthy in the first round (28th overall) of the 2024 draft, the Chiefs are 7-1 when he catches a touchdown and 4-0 when he has at least 65 receiving yards.

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