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JuJu Smith-Schuster to sign 1-year contract with Chiefs, per report

Smith-Schuster had a shoulder injury keep him out most of the 2021 season.

JuJu Smith-Schuster #19 of the Pittsburgh Steelers warms up prior to the game against the Denver Broncos at Heinz Field on October 10, 2021 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

Former Pittsburgh Steelers wideout JuJu Smith-Schuster will sign with the Kansas City Chiefs, per Smith-Schuster himself. He gets just a one-year contract worth $10.7 million, per Field Yates.

Smith-Schuster has been in Pittsburgh for the entirety of his five-year career with some major highs and very low lows throughout his tenure in the Steel City. He opened his career with two stellar years back to back, earning seven touchdowns in both 2017 and ‘18 and 917 yards his rookie season followed up by over 1400 in his second year.

But he’s also seen a big drop-off since then. Despite catching a career-high nine touchdowns in 2020, his yard totals haven’t been remotely close to what they were those first two seasons. He’s also hit paydirt a combined 26 times in his career, with 14 of them in the first two seasons and nine in 2020. That means he has a combined three scores between 2021 and 2019. So he has the ability to be great but just hasn’t found that consistency yet.

2021 performance

Last season was a tough one for Smith-Schuster. He had just 15 catches on 28 targets, 129 yards and zero touchdowns before a shoulder injury knocked him out for the remainder of the season.

What it means for Chiefs

This is a great move by Kansas City. They tried to get Smith-Schuster last offseason, but couldn’t make it work, but now get a much needed third receiver behind Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill.