Xavier Worthy-Keon Coleman trade details: Revisiting draft day deal that sent rookie WRs to AFC rivals

The 9-0 Kansas City Chiefs travel to Highmark Stadium to take on the 8-2 Buffalo Bills in Week 11 in a pivotal AFC showdown. 

Sunday's matchup marks the first time these two teams have met since last season's divisional-round classic. Kansas City won 27-24 to advance to the AFC Championship en route to winning their second straight Super Bowl. 

In addition to important stakes for playoff seedings and home-field advantage, there is another interesting aspect about this game: Kansas City and Buffalo will meet for the first time since a surprising draft-day trade that ultimately landed WRs Keon Coleman and Xavier Worthy with the AFC rivals. 

Unfortunately, Coleman won't play against Kansas City because of a wrist injury, but Worthy figures to get his usual reps as the premiere big-play threat in the Chiefs' offense.

Let's look back at the deal between the two teams that sent Coleman and Worthy to their respective rookie franchises. 

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Xavier Worthy-Keon Coleman trade details 

During the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Bills traded back, which sent the No. 28 overall pick to the Chiefs in exchange for the No. 32 overall pick with two additional picks. 

Here were the initial terms of the trade: 

• Buffalo receives pick No. 32, No. 95, and No. 221 
• Kansas City receives pick No. 28, No. 133, and No. 248 

The Bills later traded the No. 32 overall pick to Carolina in exchange for the No. 33 overall pick and a fourth-round pick.

With the trade, the Chiefs drafted Worthy out of the University of Texas in the first round, and the Bills selected Coleman out of Florida State. Here's a snapshot of both WRs' collegiate careers:

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Why did both teams make the trade? 

For starters, both teams were in need of some receiver help. The Chiefs had to replace big-play threat Marquez Valdes-Scantling, whereas the Bills had to replace star wideout Stefon Diggs, who was traded to the Texans earlier that month. Because the teams were looking for different qualities in their respective early-round WRs, they both felt a deal that could potentially help their AFC rivals made sense.

“It’s not to say there won’t be a lot of work needed on his end,” Chiefs GM Brett Veach said of the decision to draft Worthy. “It’s certainly a different game at this level. He’ll have to get stronger — and all the things that have been mentioned about [his] playing strength.

“I just think for where we are with this team, just having someone that can come in and provide game-breaking speed — and be smart enough to come in here and understand this offense and be ready to go.”

Naturally, Bills fans were pretty upset with the trade. Kansas City has been the Bills' biggest rival in the AFC in recent years, and Buffalo has a 0-3 record against the Chiefs in the playoffs. 

Not to mention the last time the Chiefs traded back with the Bills in the first round of the draft? That was in 2017 when Kansas City originally had the 27th overall pick. The Chiefs traded with Buffalo to move up to No. 10 overall to select — wait for it — Patrick Mahomes.  

 “It’ll have to play out on the field, ultimately, with the players that we acquired [and] the player that they acquired," Bills GM Brandon Beane said of the trade. It’s not like we traded the player to Kansas City; I get that narrative, like if we had traded Stefon Diggs to Kansas City, ‘well, why would you trade him there?’

“You don’t truly know who someone is going to select when you trade with them," he continued. "They’re not going to call and say, ‘Hey, we’re trading up, and we’re going to take this player.’ And if you don’t trade with them and you pick a different player, they can still trade up with someone else. I’ve never understood that narrative; I’m sure they didn’t just call the Buffalo Bills to trade up, they probably called some other teams, too.”

When both offenses face off on Sunday, we'll get first-row seats for which team made the better decision back in April.

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Xavier Worthy vs. Keon Coleman stats 2024

Worthy has also rushed for 37 yards on nine carries, with a touchdown.