The Chiefs are putting the finishing touches on their team ahead of the playoffs, and while they beat the Texans convincingly on Saturday, a veteran clearly needs to be benched.

WR Justin Watson has played 60% of the offensive snaps, the second most of any receiver on the team. He’s still playing ahead of DeAndre Hopkins, but his repeated mistakes could cost Kansas City in the postseason. After another tough touchdown, it’s obvious that the seven-year veteran needs to stay on the sidelines.

With just 19 catches on 27 receptions for 224 yards and one score this season, Watson no longer offers the value he once did. The Chiefs have better options available to them and they need to take advantage of them.

In all likelihood, the Chiefs won’t play Watson much anymore when the games really matter. They have an incentive to keep DeAndre Hopkins’ snap count below 60%, but that incentive disappears in the postseason.

Xavier Worthy had his best game as a pro and looks to be having a second-half breakout similar to Rashee Rice’s last year. With 11 targets in each of the last two weeks, he is Patrick Mahomes’ top option, ahead of Travis Kelce. Hollywood Brown looked comfortable in his season debut and JuJu Smith-Schuster is still there, so putting Watson on the field is no longer justifiable.

While Watson has been one of Mahomes’ most reliable options over the past two years, it appears he has exhausted his spot. As an impending free agent, it would be a surprise if the Chiefs re-signed him as anything other than a strong player with a knack for special teams contributions.

Even if Watson hasn’t made a valuable contribution, Andy Reid and Matt Nagy are unlikely to be blind to the issues. Especially with Brown back, we can expect the Chiefs to start moving Watson out of the offense in preparation for the playoffs.

If Kansas City beats Pittsburgh on Christmas Day, they will secure the No. 1 seed and be able to rest all of their starters in Week 18. During this possible two-week break, the offense will switch to Worthy, Brown and Kelce as the top options in the passing game.

Watson was a solid player for the Chiefs and deserves to be remembered fondly. Still, it’s time to leave him on the bench in favor of better players.

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