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Couch-Potato · 12-29-2023, 12:50 PM

Chiefs amongst ESPN's most frustrating teams:

Spoiler!

7. Kansas City Chiefs
The problem: Their wide receivers can't catch or get open.

I laid out the staggering numbers for the Chiefs' offense and their drop rates a couple of weeks ago. Things haven't gotten much better since. Even without Kadarius Toney and Skyy Moore last week, Kansas City's wideouts have dropped 7.5% of Patrick Mahomes' passes this season. No other group of wide receivers is above 5%, and no team's wideouts have been worse at catching passes in a single season over the past decade.

In addition to having drop issues, the Chiefs simply don't have enough speed and athleticism at receiver. Toney was supposed to be the difference-maker, but he hasn't played even half the offensive snaps in a game all season. Moore, a second-round pick in 2022, has disappointed. Marquez Valdes-Scantling isn't threatening opposing defenses. Justin Watson is a big body, and rookie Rashee Rice has emerged as the team's top wide receiver, but the Chiefs don't have any receivers who scare opposing defenses, which is why the Raiders had no fear of playing tight coverage and breaking on short routes during their upset victory Monday.

There is no vertical component to this passing attack. Mahomes' average pass has traveled 6.3 yards in the air this season, the shortest mark for any starting quarterback. Only Russell Wilson throws at or behind the line of scrimmage more often. And when Mahomes has thrown deep this season, he has gone 15-of-57 for 489 yards with a touchdown and five picks. His 43.6 QBR on deep passes ranks 28th out of 30 passers; only Bryce Young and Mac Jones have been worse.

While the mood was tempered for a while in Kansas City by virtue of their Super Bowl success and the benefit of the doubt Mahomes and coach Andy Reid had earned by figuring things out in years past, it's clear the patience of Chiefs fans has waned. Mahomes & Co. were booed at times in the loss to the Raiders, when Vegas scored defensive touchdowns on consecutive plays. A year ago, the fix for the offense was more Jerick McKinnon in the passing game, upping the two- and three-tight-end set usage and using Isiah Pacheco more often to punish defenses. Now, McKinnon is on injured reserve and Pacheco missed two games before being forced out of last week's loss because of a concussion.

The cavalry might not be showing up, and that's particularly disappointing because it's happening in a season in which the Chiefs have a championship-caliber defense. Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and defensive tackle Chris Jones are free agents after the season. Trading Tyreek Hill was controversial, but it helped the franchise win a championship a year ago. Trading Hill without a proven replacement at wide receiver didn't stop the Chiefs in 2022, but it seems to be haunting them and capping their ceiling now.

12-29-2023, 12:50 PM	#320
Couch-Potato Simmons @ 32 > Fisher @ 1 Join Date: Jan 2015 Casino cash: $223065	Chiefs amongst ESPN's most frustrating teams: Spoiler! 7. Kansas City Chiefs The problem: Their wide receivers can't catch or get open. I laid out the staggering numbers for the Chiefs' offense and their drop rates a couple of weeks ago. Things haven't gotten much better since. Even without Kadarius Toney and Skyy Moore last week, Kansas City's wideouts have dropped 7.5% of Patrick Mahomes' passes this season. No other group of wide receivers is above 5%, and no team's wideouts have been worse at catching passes in a single season over the past decade. In addition to having drop issues, the Chiefs simply don't have enough speed and athleticism at receiver. Toney was supposed to be the difference-maker, but he hasn't played even half the offensive snaps in a game all season. Moore, a second-round pick in 2022, has disappointed. Marquez Valdes-Scantling isn't threatening opposing defenses. Justin Watson is a big body, and rookie Rashee Rice has emerged as the team's top wide receiver, but the Chiefs don't have any receivers who scare opposing defenses, which is why the Raiders had no fear of playing tight coverage and breaking on short routes during their upset victory Monday. There is no vertical component to this passing attack. Mahomes' average pass has traveled 6.3 yards in the air this season, the shortest mark for any starting quarterback. Only Russell Wilson throws at or behind the line of scrimmage more often. And when Mahomes has thrown deep this season, he has gone 15-of-57 for 489 yards with a touchdown and five picks. His 43.6 QBR on deep passes ranks 28th out of 30 passers; only Bryce Young and Mac Jones have been worse. While the mood was tempered for a while in Kansas City by virtue of their Super Bowl success and the benefit of the doubt Mahomes and coach Andy Reid had earned by figuring things out in years past, it's clear the patience of Chiefs fans has waned. Mahomes & Co. were booed at times in the loss to the Raiders, when Vegas scored defensive touchdowns on consecutive plays. A year ago, the fix for the offense was more Jerick McKinnon in the passing game, upping the two- and three-tight-end set usage and using Isiah Pacheco more often to punish defenses. Now, McKinnon is on injured reserve and Pacheco missed two games before being forced out of last week's loss because of a concussion. The cavalry might not be showing up, and that's particularly disappointing because it's happening in a season in which the Chiefs have a championship-caliber defense. Cornerback L'Jarius Sneed and defensive tackle Chris Jones are free agents after the season. Trading Tyreek Hill was controversial, but it helped the franchise win a championship a year ago. Trading Hill without a proven replacement at wide receiver didn't stop the Chiefs in 2022, but it seems to be haunting them and capping their ceiling now.
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