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The Kansas City Chiefs are hoping for a bounce back year from Patrick Mahomes, who has been up and down by his lofty standards over the last two seasons. While the Chiefs continue to make deep playoff runs year after year, the team's light show offense seems to be a thing of the past.
Still, that isn't stopping rival coaches around the NFL from giving Mahomes his respect.
“I think Mahomes is the best quarterback to ever live,” one offensive coordinator said, per Mike Sando of The Athletic, “but the gap is smaller than it was a year ago.”
A general manager noted that the team around Mahomes isn't nearly as talented offensively as it was in the late 2010s, when the dynasty was in its formative years.
“Mahomes is the best quarterback in the world,” said the general manager. “Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson had better individual seasons. In fairness, the infrastructure around Patrick has eroded.”
An offensive coach noted Mahomes' frequent comparisons to Tom Brady.
“Mahomes has the Brady seat now, until someone proves otherwise,” said the coach. “Last year, I saw a headline saying something to the effect of, ‘Mahomes' worst year to date, and the Chiefs are undefeated.' This is when this guy is too good for his own good.”
Still the standard of the NFL
It's hard to pinpoint one specific thing that has led to the dropoff in Mahomes' stats over the last two seasons. In 2023, the Chiefs' wide receivers had a historically bad drop rate, which certainly played a major role in Mahomes' statistical output, and last year, their best receiver, Rashee Rice, went down with injury early on and never returned.
There's also the fact that Travis Kelce is not anywhere near the player he was during the prime years of his career.
Still, at times, Mahomes has looked perhaps a step slower than he was during the first few years of his career, and unable to make some of the mind-boggling throws that made him such a star to begin with.
Despite this, his NFL counterparts are not going to count him out anytime soon.
