The Kansas City Chiefs have already made moves to reunite with several members of their 2024 WR corps, re-signing Hollywood Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Justyn Ross, Tyquan Thornton and Jason Brownlee at various points of the offseason.
They’ve also lost veteran wideouts like DeAndre Hopkins and Justin Watson, with one free agent pass-catcher still out there on the open market as we speak. That player is long-time KC contributor and three-time Super Bowl champion Mecole Hardman — whose interest appears to be heating up around the league.
“Veteran receivers Mecole Hardman and Rondale Moore visited the [Chicago] Bears today,” NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero reported on the evening on March 17.
Neither wide receiver has been signed by the Bears as of 3 p.m. (CST) on March 18, but the connection isn’t totally surprising. Ever since former Chiefs executive Ryan Poles was hired as the general manager in Chicago, ex-Kansas City players have received some extra attention from the Bears.
Chicago is being viewed as a potential rising NFC franchise in 2025, with highly coveted first-time head coach Ben Johnson taking over an offense that flaunts No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams at quarterback.
Given his speed, versatility and experience, Hardman could potentially add to that offense, considering Johnson’s creative mind is a little reminiscent of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid at times. As a side, former KC offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy has also turned up in Chicago, taking a position as the current Bears running backs coach.
Chiefs Could Let Mecole Hardman Walk in NFL Free Agency for the Second Time
The Chiefs let Hardman walk in free agency in 2023, as the former second-round pick received a $4 million offer from the New York Jets. In the end, the speedster wound up back in Kansas City via trade anyway after the stint with the Jets went up in flames.
Following that return and another Super Bowl title, Hardman elected to re-sign with the Chiefs for $1.125 million and no guaranteed money last offseason. He earned a little under $1 million when all was said and done, according to Over the Cap, with 152 scrimmage yards and 1 touchdown.
Hardman’s most useful contribution came as a kick returner in 2024, averaging 26.4 yards per return with a 32-yard long. The former Pro Bowl returner also returned punts, with a 55-yard long and an average of 10.2 yards per return.
With all that being said, the Chiefs appear to have moved on to Nikko Remigio as their lead returner, along with potential return specialists like Skyy Moore and Xavier Worthy still under contract too.
It’s possible Hardman returns on a vet minimum salary, but allocating anything more to bringing him back feels redundant at this point in time. Perhaps some sort of injury changes that later on.
Nikko Remigio Impressed as Chiefs’ Lead Returner at Tail End of 2024 Campaign
Hardman’s return stats were pretty solid last year, but the 25-year-old Remigio’s were better during his limited stint as the lead returner down the stretch.
Remigio averaged 26.8 yards per akick return during the regular season with a 36-yard long (off 11 returns). In the playoffs, he was even better with 10 kick returns for a 30.1-yard average that included a 63-yard long.
Remigio also impressed on punt returns, with a 9.5-yard average during the regular season and a dominant 19.0-yard average in the playoffs (off 3 returns). The postseason opportunity as a punt returner included a 41 yarder.
Heading into March 18, it appeared as though Kansas City Chiefs veteran wide receiver and return specialist Mecole Hardman might be signing with the Chicago Bears.
Hardman visited with the Bears on March 17, but seemingly left without any sort of offer in place. Then, out of nowhere, ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler reported that Hardman would be signing with the Green Bay Packers on the evening of March 18.
Source: Free agent WR/return specialist Mecole Hardman is signing with the #Packers on a one-year deal.
Hardman takes his speed from Kansas City to Matt LaFleur’s offense.
Needless to say, this is quite the about-face in a 24-hour period, jumping from one NFC North rival to another, but it worked out for the three-time Super Bowl champ considering he came out of it with a new contract.
Per Fowler, it’s a one-year deal for Hardman in Green Bay, who “takes his speed from Kansas City to Matt LaFleur’s offense.”
Ex-Chiefs’ Mecole Hardman Lands in Crowded Packers WR Corps
The Packers surely have a plan for Hardman — which may involve returning kicks — but he’ll join a very crowded WR corps in Green Bay.
The Packers have been talked about as a team that lacks a clear superstar wide receiver, but they have several solid playmakers at the position with one of the deeper units in the league. Headlined by Jayden Reed and Romeo Doubs, Green Bay also has flaunts quality role players like Christian Watson (who could miss time recovering from a torn ACL), Dontayvion Wicks, Bo Melton and Malik Heath.
Hardman will hope to slot in somewhere within that group, potentially helping to spell Watson as the deep threat works his way back from injury.
Either way, for the second time in his NFL career, Hardman will be leaving the Chiefs in free agency. Last time, when he signed with the New York Jets in 2023, he ended up back in Kansas City before Christmas.
We’ll have to wait and see if that happens again in 2025.
Nikko Remigio Could Compete With Skyy Moore for Chiefs’ Returner Role
It definitely seemed like Nikko Remigio did enough down the stretch last year to earn the Chiefs’ returner job in 2025, but Skyy Moore could also be in the mix assuming he’s healthy.
Remigio averaged 26.8 yards per kick return during the regular season with a 36-yard long (off 11 returns). In the playoffs, he was even better with 10 kick returns for a 30.1-yard average that included a 63-yard long.
Remigio also impressed on punt returns, with a 9.5-yard average during the regular season and a dominant 19.0-yard average in the playoffs (off 3 returns). The postseason opportunity as a punt returner included a 41 yarder.
It’s easy to forget that Moore displayed some promise as a returner too. The former second-round pick was often frustrating to watch as a wide receiver, but he did flash some potential on special teams.
Moore’s career regular season averages in the return department are nowhere near Remigio’s, at 18.6 yards per kick return and 6.1 yards per punt return, but he did contribute a key 29-yard punt return during the 2022 Super Bowl run.
There’s no doubt that Remigio will be the favorite to win this role with Hardman now off the roster, but Moore will have to do whatever he can to earn a spot on the 53 in 2025. That could mean putting in more time and effort on special teams.
