Jeremy Maclin

Yes, former Chiefs wide receiver Jeremy Maclin heard the whispers that, perhaps, at age 29 he had lost a step.

Maclin, who was released by the Chiefs on June 2 and later signed with the Ravens, missed four games last year with a groin injury and there was a steep drop in production from a sensational 2015 season. Maclin had 44 catches for 536 yards and two touchdowns in 2016 after he had 87 receptions for 1,088 yards and eight touchdowns the season before.

Talking with ESPN’s Adam Schefter’s podcast “Know Them From Adam,” Maclin said that groin injury was worse than people knew. He revealed the injury when Schefter asked about the perception that Maclin was a step slower.

“Well, I tore my groin last year,” Maclin told Schefter. “So, if I’m supposed to be just as fast with a torn groin, then more power to them. Man, I guess they just have to wait and see. I don’t really have anything else to say about that. Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion. I’ll still be able to get open. I’ll still be able to make big plays, that’s for sure.”

Maclin posted 87 catches for 1,088 yards and eight touchdowns in 2015, but had a substandard 2016, struggling to a 44-536-3 line thru 12 games. He was a respectable No. 44 WR on a per game basis through the first eight weeks, but the groin injury submarined his season. He joins a Baltimore offense that has had the most pass attempts over the past two seasons and lost Steve Smith (101 targets), Dennis Pitta (121) and Kamar Aiken (50) from last year.