Mecole Hardman is already familiar with a homecoming. Could another be in store for the former Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver?
Two years ago, Hardman was preparing for training camp with the New York Jets in his first change of scenery away from the Chiefs, the team that drafted him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft. After five years with the team, Hardman was allowed to leave in free agency and he found a one-year deal with the Jets, who were hoping to ride Aaron Rodgers' arm to contention.
Mecole Hardman might be hoping for another homecoming with the Chiefs.
By midseason, the Jets were suffering through yet another abysmal season, this time with Zach Wilson and Trevor Siemian leading the offense after Rodgers went down with an injury in Week 1. Meanwhile Hardman was sidelined for no good reason as a healthy scratched tasked with very little—if anything at all.
By the NFL's trade deadline, the Chiefs decided they could use some reinforcements at wideout and turned to Hardman to provide some instant relief as a player already familiar with the elements. It's entirely plausible that the same scenario could play out in 2025.
The Chiefs brought back Hardman in 2024 on a one-year deal, but he once again found a new home in free agency this spring with the Green Bay Packers. While things are going well for him so far in offseason training activities and minicamp, the truth is that Green Bay might have already crowded him out of the picture.
The Packers are loaded at wideouts with players who are much greater locks for the active roster than Hardman. Jaylen Reed, Romeo Doubs, and Dontayvion Wicks all return after earning 70 targets or more a year ago. Christian Watson is back after an injury-plagued campaign. Matthew Golden was the team's first-round pick, and Savion Williams was the third-round selection. That's six players who are guaranteed spots.
Hardman can add value in a seventh spot as a special teams performer with strong return ability and championship experience. There's definite value added by having Hardman on the roster, but everything hinges on how Green Bay wants to constitute the rest of the roster. And this doesn't even get into other WRs who could make a case for inclusion as well.
What this means is that Hardman could be an expendable piece in the days and weeks leading up to roster cuts. Depending on how the Chiefs feel about the competition at the bottom of the depth chart, or if preseason injuries come into play, Hardman could find himself with another homecoming story in K.C.
