The fascinating potential and unrealistic pressure awaiting Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes

[Hammock Parties]

Ghost written by Baby Lee.

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/spt...#storylink=cpy

The act of burning a jersey is silly, usually petty, and almost always a cry for attention.

After an(other) excruciating playoff loss, at least one Chiefs fan did that with an Alex Smith jersey, and because this is the 21st century, he shared the video on social media. The message is unclear.

Maybe he is blaming the quarterback with the league’s highest passer rating and most success on downfield passes this season for the disappointment. Maybe he’s blaming the quarterback who threw two touchdowns and no interceptions for a loss in which the play calling, receivers, tackling, scheme, health, kicker and, yes, officials all weren’t good enough.

Maybe this is an intended metaphor about a new beginning, with a new quarterback.

Whatever. Doesn’t matter, other than serving as an anecdotal example to open a column making a point I’ve been thinking about for months:

Bless his heart, Patrick Mahomes should know what’s coming.

Smith just played the season of his professional life, one that Mahomes is unlikely to match next year, and has thrown nine touchdowns and two interceptions in five playoff games in Kansas City. And a lot of us can’t wait to get rid of him. At least one of us burned his jersey. This is so weird.

Look, the Chiefs will likely trade Smith. That’s the smart move, anyway, because Mahomes is freakishly talented, showed well in his spot start in Denver, and the team around him could be improved with the $17 million in cap space and draft capital gained in trading Smith.

Assuming that happens, Mahomes will be the Chiefs’ starting quarterback in 2018 and begin his career with more pressure and higher expectations than any athlete in the history of Kansas City sports, with the possible exception of Alex Gordon.

Chiefs fans have been waiting decades for Mahomes. That is not hyperbole. The year he was born the Chiefs won the AFC West with a former 49ers backup and lost their first playoff game, at home, atrociously.

Even back then, many fans were tired of someone else’s backup proving just good enough to lose in the playoffs. Even back then, many fans thought the Chiefs had gone too long without drafting and developing their own quarterback. Even back then, many fans wanted something fresh.

That was 22 years ago.

The Chiefs just won the AFC West with a former 49ers backup and lost their first playoff game, at home, atrociously. The story hasn’t changed so much as it’s gone from molehill to mountain, snowball to boulder.

Dreams of someone exactly like Mahomes are older than Mahomes. Babies have been raised by parents complaining about the Chiefs not drafting their own quarterback. Some of those babies have now graduated college, bought homes, become doctors.

All of those hopes and complaints will now land on Mahomes, who spent much of last year’s training camp learning how to take a snap from under center.

Assuming Smith is traded, and assuming coach Andy Reid and general manager Brett Veach use the flexibility to improve the roster, Mahomes will be surrounded by the most complete team the Chiefs are capable of employing.

We can talk as much as we want about “growing pains” and “learning curves,” but the downsides always sound better in theory than they feel in practice.

In 2012, many Chiefs fans told themselves they just wanted their team to not stink. Five years after that, many of us don’t care about that. It’s about the playoffs now.

For decades, Royals fans told themselves they just wanted their team to be competitive. Two years after a parade, many are already lamenting a rebuild. Mike Sweeney was once the most popular athlete in town, other than Tony Gonzalez. The contract extension he signed to say in Kansas City was still fresh when he started hearing boos at home games.

None of this makes Kansas City fans mean, unfair, unique, or even rare. Just makes us fans.

When I first started thinking about all of this, I had in my head that Kansas City is particularly tough on quarterbacks. But with more consideration, I don’t think that’s true. Lots of places are tough on quarterbacks — Cleveland and Washington and Chicago and Philadelphia and New York and even New England, where just two years ago some wanted Tom Brady out.

“It’s just part of being in one of those 32 jobs,” said Trent Green, who spent six years with the Chiefs and a total of five more in Washington, St. Louis, and Miami. “The team means so much to the city here. That was something as a player that I consciously thought about. You can affect the mood of the city by the way you play and perform. If the Chiefs have a bad day, you can tell, just going around town. They’re going to act differently.”

Kansas City has a different view on quarterbacks, because the Chiefs went so long without drafting one.

Not just that, but Chiefs fans watched one rival win Super Bowls with a homegrown Hall of Famer quarterback who then became GM and convinced another Hall of Fame quarterback to win a Super Bowl there. The Chiefs’ other rival once went to the Super Bowl with the quarterback the Chiefs dumped for Elvis Grbac.

That can’t help but harden you as a fan, in some ways.

This is a lot to take on. Mahomes is 22. This could’ve been his senior year at Texas Tech. Anyone in his recruiting class who redshirted will play college football next season, too.

He’s inexperienced, even when compared to other quarterbacks his age. He was a baseball player growing up, so his summers were about repeating the mechanics on his fastball, not doing the camps and watching the film and competing in 7-on-7 tournaments like most who eventually make the NFL. He didn’t play football full-time until his sophomore year at Tech.

Look, if we’re taking roll on who’s been caught up in and contributed to Mahomes hype, I stand before you today first in line with my hand pointed to the sky.

His talent and potential are so much of why sports have had my heart all my life. He did nothing to temper my excitement in that win at Denver. He had the bad interception, and was bothered more by blitzes than I thought watching live, but made at least six completions that simply cannot be taught and haven’t been made by a Chiefs quarterback since ever.

This is why I believe this is important, at least relative to the silliness of sports. It’s not just the jersey burners. As Reid might say, We all have a piece of this, ‘k?

Mahomes really might be a star. But it is nearly impossible for him to statistically match the season Smith just had, and the same way the Chiefs’ lack of playoff success these past five years are about more than Smith, fixing what’s missing is about much more than Mahomes.

[notorious]

He will be stepping into one of the most talented offenses in the NFL. The tools are there.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by notorious

He will be stepping into one of the most talented offenses in the NFL. The tools are there.

He'll be fine.

As long as Andy remembers to funnel the offense through Hunt and...yeah...we might be ****ed...

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Marcellus

I read this on the Star this morning and laughed every time he stated Mahomes had no chance of statistically matching Alex's season next year.

He may throw a few more picks but he will throw more TD's and for more yards. Bank on it.

We have an absurd amount of talent on offense, and it looks like Robinson is going to be a contributor soon. And we get Conley back.

I really think Mahomes could throw 30 TDs in his first season. Especially when 38% of Alex's TDs were on passes thrown under 10 yards. He had SIX TD passes thrown BEHIND the line of scrimmage.

[Best22]

Originally Posted by Dayze

why did my wife give birth to a black son?

....I've been working too many hours.

Originally Posted by Mile High Mania

Man, it's pointless to try and even engage in a conversation with some of you...

That's because we aren't arguing with Bronco fans. We don't care

We are arguing with people who think Alex Smith should start next year because Mahomes "will struggle."

[Chiefnj2]

On the plus side, you can see how much of a difference a good QB (with good coaching) can make - Goff, Wentz, Watson. So you have optimism for a quick turnaround.

Negative - Defense looks like a semi-rebuild, coaching needs tons of improvement and you have some new positional coaches, the QB needs a #1 WR.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

the QB needs a #1 WR.

Reek is absolutely a #1 WR.

He answered that question this year.

[RockChalk]

Originally Posted by RippedmyFlesh

I know put up 21 pts in those games and home field advantage. He doesn't have to set the world on fire just not go into a shell and disappear.

Home field advantage would have been awesome. We could have lost to New England, Pittsburgh, or Jacksonville this weekend instead.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

Reek is absolutely a #1 WR.

He answered that question this year.

Problem is we don't have a legit no 2.

I could take Wilson as the slot but we need a legit no 2...

[KINGPIN CHIEFS FAN]

Originally Posted by Buckweath

I think Mahomes will have a really good supporting cast next year on offense. He couldn't have it much better really. I will be fine with 15 Ints maybe even 20 but I fully expect the yards and the TDs.

If the defense is above average, which is really an unknown at this point, with a coach like Andy Reid who has a phenomenal track record in the season, I absolutely expect a winning season. At this time though, I wouldnt be expecting to win the division or do anything in the playoffs.

Why are you so convinced that he will be an interception machine? He has never had a problem with interceptions in college or during his time with the Chiefs yet all you worry about is him cutting down his interceptions. Maybe you need to follow Alex to his next team so you won't have to worry about interceptions. Mahomes accuracy is crazy good, he won't throw a lot of interceptions!

[staylor26]

Originally Posted by Chiefnj2

On the plus side, you can see how much of a difference a good QB (with good coaching) can make - Goff, Wentz, Watson. So you have optimism for a quick turnaround.

Negative - Defense looks like a semi-rebuild, coaching needs tons of improvement and you have some new positional coaches, the QB needs a #1 WR

He has one

[Chiefnj2]

Originally Posted by staylor26

He has one

Nope. A #1 WR doesn't drop half the balls thrown his way in the playoffs.

[DRM08]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

Reek is absolutely a #1 WR.

He answered that question this year.

Tyreek is about 4 inches taller than Pat’s favorite receiver at Texas Tech, midget speedster Jakeem Grant (BAMF in his own right).

[ARROW2]

5=10 for 33 yards, one first down before final drive in the second half and ZERO points. Titans had drops too. mariotta even threw a.....gulp.....pick.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by DRM08

Tyreek is about 4 inches taller than Pat’s favorite receiver at Texas Tech, midget speedster Jakeem Grant (BAMF in his own right).

Pat got a 5-6/4.38 dude to rack up 3300 yards and 27 TD in college.



Tyreek Hill is going to be a flamethrower.

[Sassy Squatch]

Originally Posted by KINGPIN CHIEFS FAN

Why are you so convinced that he will be an interception machine? He has never had a problem with interceptions in college or during his time with the Chiefs yet all you worry about is him cutting down his interceptions. Maybe you need to follow Alex to his next team so you won't have to worry about interceptions. Mahomes accuracy is crazy good, he won't throw a lot of interceptions!

Did you watch his debut? He threw a horribly overthrown ball that was picked and made an awful decision that could have easily been another. That's not going to just magically disappear.