National Football League

Jeremy Maclin was ‘shocked’ after hearing about his Chiefs release by voicemail

Published Jun. 15, 2017 2:19 p.m. ET

Cameron DaSilva

The Kansas City Chiefs weren’t exactly littered with talent at wide receiver entering the offseason. Their primary wideouts were Jeremy Maclin, Tyreek Hill and Chris Conley, which isn’t exactly a unit stacked with Pro Bowlers.

Yet shockingly, they decided to part ways with Maclin by outright cutting him. It was a surprising move by all accounts, stripping Alex Smith of arguably his best receiver on the roster. Maclin, for one, was absolutely taken back by the news.

It didn’t help that he learned about his release by a voicemail.

“Through a voicemail,” Maclin said during an appearance on PFT Live. “[From G.M.] John Dorsey. I was upset, I was shocked. Apparently, they had been trying to trade me for two or three months. Which who knows if that’s true or not? I would just think that … a guy who is going into his ninth year would know if he’s being shopped or not. It is what it is."

Maclin said he doesn’t have any hard feelings or bad blood with the Chiefs organization, he just wants to move on to his new team, the Baltimore Ravens.

“I still have respect for Big Red, still have respect for the organization. I’m not going to bad mouth anybody or talk any dirt on anybody. It was an unfortunate situation. They felt like they didn’t want me as a player anymore, so it is what it is. I’m happy with where I am right now, and I think that might be the last time I talk about what I call my former life. So I don’t think I want to talk about that anymore.”