KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chiefs returned to a familiar friend Wednesday, obtaining wide receiver Mecole Hardman from the New York Jets in exchange for a swap of late-round draft choices.
The Chiefs will reportedly send a 2025 sixth-round selection to the Jets in exchange for Hardman and a 2025 seventh-round selection.
The trade reunites Hardman with quarterback Patrick Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid, where the 25-year-old receiver spent the first four seasons of his NFL career after the club made him the 56th overall selection of the 2019 NFL Draft in the second round.
Working mostly with Mahomes, Hardman provided his quarterbacks with a passer rating of 125.08 during this time with the Chiefs. Only one Chiefs wide receiver in 2023 — rookie Rashee Rice (113.7) — has posted a passer rating above 91.0 when targeted this season, according to Pro Football Focus.
Hardman signed a one-year, $3.58 million free-agent deal with the Jets during the offseason including a $2.5 million signing bonus. The Chiefs will pick up the prorated portion of Hardman’s $1.08 million base salary, which amounts to $720,000. Kansas City entered the day with $3,396,154 in available cap space, according to the NFLPA public salary cap report.
Hardman’s contract also includes a bonus of $24,705 for each appearance on the game-day active roster, with eight likely to be earned counting toward the 2023 salary cap. Hardman appeared in five games for the Jets, which means the Chiefs will have three bonus payments ($74,115) applied toward this year’s salary cap. Any bonus earned beyond eight games will count toward the 2024 salary cap.
The deal with the Jets also includes incentives for receptions, yards and touchdowns, starting at $125,000 for 50 catches, 650 yards and six touchdown catches and maxing out at $500,000 for 70 receptions, 850 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Hardman struggled to find a role for the Jets, playing just 28 snaps on offense in five games with one catch for 6 yards on three targets. He hopes to recapture the form he enjoyed during the past four seasons in Kansas City where he caught 152 passes for 2,094 yards and 16 touchdowns while also rushing for 125 yards and two scores.
The return of Hardman gives the Chiefs another deep threat, particularly with the loss of Justin Watson, who expects to miss several games with an elbow injury. The Chiefs can also benefit from Hardman’s speed — he posted a 4.33-second 40-yard time during the NFL Combine in 2019.
During his four seasons in Kansas City, Hardman averaged 1.58 yards per route run and 8.4 yards after the catch. Among Chiefs receivers this season, only Rashee Rice (2.75) and Watson (1.71) have more yards per route run, while Rice leads the group in averaging 7.0 yards after the catch.
The versatility of Hardman is another plus for the Chiefs. He split his time between the slot and on the outside for the Chiefs and was also a key tool in the Chiefs’ pre-snap motion and jet sweep attack. He can also step in as needed into kick return and punt return roles, which have been handled by Montrell Washington since receiver Ritchie James landed on injured reserve.
