The veteran Kansas City wide receiver looks for the team to bounce back in 2025.
Now back for his third season with the Kansas City Chiefs, wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster has a renewed sense of purpose.
After re-signing with the Chiefs in March, Smith-Schuster used the offseason to reset both physically and mentally. Healthy and ready to contribute, he has his sights set on helping Kansas City return to the Super Bowl in 2025.
“Honestly, I feel great,” Smith-Schuster told reporters after Wednesday’s practice at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph. “I finally took the year to myself. Early on, I got my vacation out of the way, taking my family to Japan. After that, I really doubled down and buckled down on myself, pouring into myself and having the right people around me.”
Smith-Schuster is hoping to make this year more productive than the last one.
“This whole offseason was just getting back healthy, being strong, being able to run over and over again,” he noted. “I even got a little bit better in golf — so just getting better this summer.”
Smith-Schuster appeared in 14 Chiefs games last season, finishing with 18 receptions for 231 yards and two touchdowns. He had been brought in as veteran depth after the New England Patriots released him just before the start of the regular season.
During his first season with Kansas City in 2022, Smith-Schuster posted 78 receptions for 933 yards and helped the Chiefs win Super Bowl LVII. The veteran receiver is motivated to recapture that form and play a key role in another title run — especially after the team’s disappointing loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX.
“It’s tough when this team has high expectations like going to the AFC Championship, going to the Super Bowl and expecting to win,” he explained. “When you lose like that, it’s not a good feeling. So, you have that motivation of that’s what we’re chasing. We want to get back there.”
Putting his performance aside, Smith-Schuster still takes his role as a veteran presence among the wideouts very seriously. Now entering his eighth year in the league, he takes pride in mentoring the next generation of Chiefs receivers. His leadership has become a key part of the unit’s daily rhythm.
“It’s a huge responsibility, said Smith-Schuster, “and I take it pretty seriously. We’ve got a bunch of young guys in the room — and for me, it’s a big responsibility that I take full control of. I lead by not just my words, but by my actions.
“Like I said, there’s a lot of guys, a lot of experience [with] different ages. Everyone’s coachable, so I’m glad to take that responsibility.”