Wayne Hills Grad Signs With Super Bowl Champion KC Chiefs, Team Says

WAYNE, NJ — A Wayne native has joined Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and the rest of the Kansas City Chiefs football team, the organization announced last week.

Jaaron Hayek graduated from Wayne Hills High School in 2019 and played college ball at Villanova University as a wide receiver from 2019-2023. He officially signed with the squad on Tuesday, May 7 after a successful rookie tryout.

The organization said Hayek was "one of the standouts" in a group of 38 rookies who attended a three-day minicamp from May 4-6, hauling in multiple catches in various areas of the field.

"His performance clearly impressed the Chiefs' coaches enough to earn a contract," noted team reporter Matt McMullen.

The team waived another rookie wide receiver (Reggie Brown, who had signed last week) to make space on the roster. He will wear #89 for the Chiefs.

At 6'1" and 200 pounds, Hayek caught 170 passes for 2,744 yards and 29 touchdowns over the 48 career games he played for Villanova.

He appeared on the podcast Chief Concerns, telling hosts Marcus Dash and Jason Dunn (a former Chiefs wide receiver) that he will work hard to learn from the seasoned players in the locker room. Hayek said multiple people told him to build a relationship with at least one veteran player in the locker room:

"Whether it be a three-year vet or a 10-year or 15-year veteran, finding that one vet that you can trust and that respects you, and that you can ask questions 24/7 — and getting under his wing," he said.

He mentioned backup quarterback Carson Wentz, and fellow wide receiver Justin Watson — who also went to a smaller university — as possible players to stick with.

Hayek also said he will maintain habits from college that have helped him develop as a player.

"If I was joining any team, I would stick to the same mindset, do the same things that I plan on doing...extra film work for sure, extra recovery, extra field work, getting extra catches in," he said.

Hayek's older brothers Hunter and Tyler played college football at Rutgers University, also as wide receivers.

At Wayne Hills, Hayek earned three varsity letters in football, two in track and field, and one in baseball. His senior year, Hayek was given all-league and all-state honors and totaled 1,162 yards and 15 touchdowns with 64 receptions.