![]() If the Chiefs are truly headed for dynasty territory, then this year’s NFL Draft will have a lot to say about it. The offseason will bring a vision of roster-building anew, one that can hopefully keep the Chiefs atop the AFC and dreaming of a fourth Super Bowl appearance in five seasons. There’s only one game left on the books for the Kansas City Chiefs before a whole new set of questions, concerns, and narratives arrive for the franchise to address. Herbert, 24, gives them a shot at overcoming Mahomes and Reid.įootball lovers, meantime, can enjoy the magic show Chargers leaders could’ve preempted but thankfully did not.Let’s try our hand at a new first-round mock draft to see who the Kansas City Chiefs should look at. Smartly, Telesco and Spanos spent it on Justin Herbert. Two years after Mahomes went to the Chiefs, the Chargers lost enough games to get another top-10 draft pick. The Mahomes-Reid tandem was two or three plays from reaching five Super Bowls in the five years.įortunately for Telesco and Spanos, good luck banged on their door once again. In the five seasons since he replaced Smith, who returned a premium pick and a starting cornerback via a trade, Mahomes has led Kansas City to five AFC title games and three Super Bowls, as compared to two AFC title games and one Super Bowl for the Chargers in 40 years of Spanos stewardship. It’d be fanciful to think the Chargers would’ve supplied Mahomes with three homegrown, All-Pro teammates (each drafted after the first round) and navigated an NFL system that punishes success as adroitly as the 2022 Chiefs. Well-regarded quarterbacks coach Shane Steichen, a Norv Turner-trained assistant, went on to the Philadelphia Eagles, whose recent team Mahomes and the Chiefs outpointed in Super Bowl LVII, 38-35.īut know this: it’d be nuts to believe Mahomes would’ve thrived with Team Spanos as he has with the Chiefs under the brilliant, high-salaried Reid and Eric Bieniemy, the only coordinator he’s known in his five years as a starter. He was too capable for that to happen, and the ’18 Chargers were talented, earning a playoff berth and a wild-card round victory at Baltimore. Let’s be clear: Mahomes would not have been a bust as an L.A. In Kansas City, Chiefs fans made sure it was the visiting QB who had to overcome communication challenges caused by a loud crowd. Wearing blue and gold, Mahomes would’ve been asked to overcome one of the NFL’s most potent forces. And because he was unwilling to relocate his family, Rivers commuted from San Diego to Orange County throughout the 2017 season, cramping his ability to assist a rookie understudy. But Rivers had no background in hybrid playmaking. With the Los Angeles Chargers, Mahomes would’ve had to resort to silent counts during home games, because so many fans in Carson supported the visiting team. He would’ve been a world apart from cozy Kansas City, where a zealous fan base has provided him a competitive advantage in every home game. If Telesco and Spanos had drafted him, Mahomes would’ve trained in San Diego for two months and followed the team to Greater Los Angeles, where the Chargers were an afterthought. As Mahomes soaked up the apprenticeship, Smith led the NFL in passer rating and averaged 5.9 yards per rush, furthering the rookie’s education. He showed him how to run Reid’s version of the West Coast offense. Smith shared his NFL wisdom with the rookie quarterback. Where Rivers was strictly a pocket quarterback, Smith was a mobile playmaker who had mastered the same basic run-pass reads Mahomes had learned and knew how to apply them in the NFL. Helix High School alum Alex Smith proved to be an invaluable NFL mentor, according to the QB’s longtime agent Leigh Steinberg and Mahomes himself. Instead of throwing to Keenan Allen and ancient Antonio Gates - a savvy but speed-challenged pair - the rifle-armed Mahomes teamed up with the NFL’s scariest receiver in speedster Tyreek Hill and a young tight end in Travis Kelce that NFL defenses still haven’t solved. Instead of beginning his NFL career under Anthony Lynn, Mahomes began under Andy Reid. The situation awaiting Mahomes in Kansas City was as good as it gets for a young QB. They had seen in Mahomes what other teams had failed to see: greatness that had been clouded by streaks of reckless play for Tech teams that couldn’t stop opponents from scoring. They were all too happy to send three premium draft picks to the Buffalo Bills. The Chiefs knew they could rise 17 spots to claim Mahomes. Kansas City’s stealthy plan hadn’t been wrecked. So when NFL commish Roger Goodell announced the Chargers selected Williams, giving Rivers his favorite type of receiving target, the Chiefs let out a collective exhale. ![]() 7 because the final San Diego Chargers team, beaten down and under-capitalized, had gone 5-11. Making the Chiefs more nervous, Telesco and Spanos wouldn’t have to spend extra draft picks to get Mahomes. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |