National Football League

Legion of Zoom? Chiefs, Patrick Mahomes finally have the weapons they need

Published Sep. 9, 2024 11:16 a.m. ET

You can ask Patrick Mahomes what it was like operating his offense last season. He'll tell you. "It wasn't fun," he said during training camp.

He sure seemed to enjoy himself on Thursday night.

After the Kansas City Chiefs' Week 1 win over the Baltimore Ravens, Mahomes was cracking jokes and flashing smiles during his press conference. He went so far as to suggest that Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely "should wear white cleats next time" to get the call to go his way on the final game-losing play where his toe (in black cleats) was visibly out of bounds against the white end zone line. That play clinched the victory for the Chiefs.

And then when he was asked about getting his hands dirty (and risking injury) while shoving running back Isiah Pacheco into the end zone for a touchdown?

"I feel like I should get half a touchdown as well," said Mahomes.

There's no mystery why Mahomes was in such a good mood.

His offense is back.

Have the Chiefs put the NFL on notice with 27-20 win over Ravens?

Mahomes didn't even play that well. His teammates did, and that seemed to be what mattered to him in evaluating the team's season-opening win.

For the past two seasons — and last season in particular — the Chiefs have not made full use of Mahomes' unique set of skills. It was like asking Max Verstappen to drive a go-cart — or, for all you non-F1 fans, it was like asking Taylor Swift to not sing "Cruel Summer." Even if you're not an F1 person or you're not a Swifty, you get it: Mahomes needs to be able to throw the deep ball in addition to the quick game and the backyard ball. He needs a pass-catchers who help him make use of every part of the field at any given moment.

For the past two years, the biggest missing ingredient has been the deep game.

It's why Mahomes was urgently implementing rookie receiver Xavier Worthy and veteran wideout Hollywood Brown into the offense during training camp. Early in camp, Mahomes said "there's no easing" in Worthy. The QB wasn't lying. Worthy had two touchdowns in Week 1 with 68 yards from scrimmage. The first touchdown was a 21-yard carry on a reverse.

"He's so cool, calm and collected like all the time," Mahomes said. "You never even see the excitement on him, but he goes up there and makes plays. Obviously, we want to continue to use him more and more. I thought he had a great day making big plays in big moments."

The second touchdown was a 35-yard deep reception on busted coverage. Worthy slipped behind the Baltimore secondary. Mahomes had been eyeing the receiver's matchup before the snap, and when the quarterback saw Worthy get wide open, just about everyone knew they would score.

"Definitely a bust in coverage, but that happens early in the year, and I just had to take advantage of it," Mahomes said.

The Chiefs can't expect teams to leave Worthy open anymore. But they can absolutely expect his scores to change the complexion of the offense.

"Just having him out there, it just opens up stuff," Mahomes said. "You saw when he's out there, they're playing shell coverages, getting guys like Trav [Travis Kelce], getting guys like Rashee [Rice] open underneath, and that's what's so great about this offense is that we're able to do all of that. That's when we're at our best and so, like I said, when we get Hollywood [Brown] out there too, it's going to be tough for defenses to decide who they want to cover."

Now that Mahomes mentioned Rice, let's talk about him. His offseason was complicated. He faces eight felony charges for a street-racing accident in Dallas. It's always difficult to reconcile his real-life mistakes that caused harm while discussing his football performance. While he awaits the legal ramifications, Rice has turned himself into a better football player than he was last year. And he was really good at the end of his rookie year.

Even from Rice's first catch — on the Chiefs offense's first play — it was clear that Rice was giving vibes as a WR1.

It's a seemingly simple route, isn't it? But what makes it special is the timing, the rapport and the ease with which Rice and Mahomes executed. Despite cornerback Marlon Humphrey setting up in good coverage, the play was not defensible. That's what No. 1 receivers do.

"He knows the offense so some of those times that he might have been a little hesitant at the beginning of last year, he just goes. He just goes [and] trusts his instinct," Mahomes said of Rice after the game. "I want to continue to make him push down the field more. I think he can do that. The defense wasn't giving that to us today, but I think that if he can continue to work on that, he can be one of the best receivers in the league."

Rice brings out Mahomes' mental sharpness. For all the quarterback's physical gifts, Mahomes is a brilliant football player. Rice is the type of always-open tool that Mahomes can move around the formation to beat defenses, similar but different to what Julian Edelman did for Tom Brady and what Cooper Kupp does for Matthew Stafford.

It's a testament to the receiver's performance that Kelce was an afterthought in Week 1.

The Chiefs asked Kelce to block on a lot of plays. But they didn't make heavy use of him as a pass-catcher. It almost feels like they're saving him for later in the season. But even when relatively inactive in the passing game, Kelce converted a third down on one of Mahomes' characteristic, backyard-style plays. Mahomes scrambled to avoid the rush and Kelce found open field to pick up a first down.

"He wasn't supposed to be on that side of the field and he continued to get over there and get open," Mahomes said.

Let's not understate this quality that Kelce brings out of Mahomes. It's one of the quintessential elements of Mahomes' game. And it remains intact with Kelce in the offense, even if — for now — they're not in desperation mode and, therefore, don't need him to rack up huge yards.

The Chiefs don't even have all their weapons in the mix. Brown will return from a shoulder injury in the next few weeks, and he'll help the team stretch the field with his speed. But that's not likely all he'll do. Mahomes was impressed with Brown's versatility in camp. We should see the veteran receiver take on a dynamic role, even if his snap count ends up being limited by the team's excess of options.

This offense is textured and layered and complex. And it's only going to get more intricate as Brown returns to health and Worthy gets more comfortable at the NFL level. There really isn't anything Mahomes can't do. He understands better than any other QB in the NFL how to run an offense that wins games. And sometimes, that means playing boring as hell. But coach Andy Reid isn't going to ask Mahomes to do that anymore.

In Week 1, the Chiefs showed they have real voltage.

Bring on the Legion of Zoom.

Prior to joining FOX Sports as the AFC East reporter, Henry McKenna spent seven years covering the Patriots for USA TODAY Sports Media Group and Boston Globe Media. Follow him on Twitter at @henrycmckenna.

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