Chiefs trade for Colts receiver Josh Downs before the deadline, giving up two Day 3 picks

The Kansas City Chiefs added a receiver at the trade deadline Tuesday, acquiring Josh Downs from the Indianapolis Colts. The Chiefs send 2027 fourth- and fifth-round picks to Indianapolis and get back Downs plus a 2027 seventh-rounder, according to CBS Sports, which cited ESPN. FOX Sports reported that both teams announced the deal Tuesday afternoon.

The trade fills a real need. CBS Sports described the Kansas City passing game as thin and more one-dimensional than at any point in the Patrick Mahomes era. Downs joins a group led by Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy and a tight end room that still includes Travis Kelce. He gives Mahomes another option underneath without costing the team anything on Day 2 of the draft.

Downs had asked out of Indianapolis, Yahoo Sports reported, and the 2-7 Colts have turned into the deadline's biggest seller. Guard Quenton Nelson, defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and receiver Keenan Allen were already gone. The 25-year-old is a 2023 third-round pick out of North Carolina and caught 140 passes for 1,574 yards and seven touchdowns over his first two seasons. With Alec Pierce hurt this year, he led the Colts with 354 receiving yards on 57 targets. His contract runs out after the season, so Kansas City is renting him for the stretch run unless the two sides agree to an extension.

The scouting view is mixed. In his trade grades for SB Nation, James Dator gave both teams a B. He wrote that Downs does his best work on short catches with yards after the catch, and that Indianapolis hurt him by pushing his routes deeper. Dator called the deal "a solid move for an underutilized player they could breathe life into."

What it means for Atlanta

Downs could be in uniform when the Chiefs visit the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, Nov. 15 (CBS). Kansas City is 6-2 and coming off a 35-12 win over the New York Jets. Before that came the team's only two losses, 20-3 at Seattle and 28-24 at Denver. The offense managed just three points in Seattle, which is the kind of game that shows why the front office went looking for another receiver. Downs is also familiar to this defense: the Chiefs beat Indianapolis 33-30 earlier this season.

Across the 12 venues on this site's Chiefs-Falcons board, Kansas City is favored. Novig has the Chiefs at -178 on the moneyline, and the best price anywhere is Pinnacle at -175, so the venues are only a few cents apart. Atlanta is +170 on Novig. On the spread, Novig lists Kansas City -3.5 at +113, while Pinnacle has the Chiefs at -3 for -115. The Falcons +3.5 is -115 on Novig and -114 at BetRivers. Novig puts the total at 44.5, and Fanatics has the high number at 45.5. Sportsbook hold on the moneyline runs from 3.2% to 4.7%.