Jon

Baldwin

Baldwin is coming up on a month without practicing, and almost certainly won’t be active on Sunday against the Lions. Well behind the curve in a Chiefs’ passing attack that’s looked bad since the first snap of the preseason, Baldwin won’t be worth a flier once he finally gets on the field.

Baldwin has been targeting Week 4 for his return all along, but he will still be buried on the depth chart. The Chiefs have no surprises on their inactive list as they adjust to playing without Jamaal Charles: QB Ricky Stanzi, WR Jerheme Urban, T Steve Maneri, NT Jerrell Powe, DL Brandon Bair and S Reshard Langford.

Kansas City’s first-round pick is still without a timetable to return.

The Chiefs want to use Baldwin on special teams eventually, but he’s not yet cutting it on the practice field. With Urban out, Steve Breaston might see an additional target or two, which probably isn’t enough to make a difference.

Baldwin hasn’t been active yet after breaking his thumb during a preseason fight with Thomas Jones. “He did enough things in practice that we were all excited and thought he could potentially help us,” said Haley. Baldwin, the 26th overall pick in April’s draft, figures to be active when the Chiefs come out of their bye. He’ll have to earn a spot in the receiver rotation, which won’t be quite so easy now that Steve Breaston is picking it up.

Baldwin got involved right out of the gate as Matt Cassel targeted him on a vertical route on the very first drive. But from there, the Chiefs ran mostly two-wide sets as they sat on a big lead. Until Baldwin passes Steve Breaston on the depth chart, he’ll be off the fantasy radar.

Teammate Steve Breaston notes that Baldwin has “studied his playbook” and “learned a lot” since the end of the season. “He’s in meetings, he’s attentive, he’s calling out the plays, motion and shifts,” said Breaston. “With him knowing that, he’s just going to be a lot faster on the field.” It sounds like Baldwin may have gotten a wake-up call after a mostly disappointing rookie season.

Baldwin is barely seeing any snaps under Romeo Crennel. In the last two weeks, he has two catches and played behind Terrence Copper today.

The Chiefs’ first-round pick was given a golden opportunity to step up after Dwayne Bowe was lost for the day at halftime with a neck injury, but instead caught just two second-half passes for 17 yards. Inconsistent after making his debut in Week 7, Baldwin tallied just 21 catches for 254 yards, but also showed flashes of dynamic physical skill. He’ll be worth a late-round flier in fantasy drafts next season.

Baldwin’s season went into the tank when Matt Cassel went on I.R., and tonight’s showing did nothing to discourage that assessment. He could be worth stashing in hopes the Chiefs will want to develop him down the stretch, but don’t pass up on an emerging free agent to do it. Baldwin is a WR5/6.