The Kansas City Chiefs made a heavy investment at the wide receiver position this offseason. They hope the roster changes will help with Andy Reid’s new offensive scheme for the 2024 season.
The Kansas City Chiefs had a WR problem last season
The Chiefs’ receiver problems were well-chronicled during the regular season, as they led the league in drops. Fortunately, the Chiefs played much better in the playoffs, and much of that was due to Rashee Rice finishing his rookie year on a high note.
The Chiefs’ passing game also had another flaw: the deep ball. They haven’t had the same deep threat since Tyreek Hill was in a red uniform, but the 2023 season was especially bad for Patrick Mahomes in that area. 2023 was the worst season Mahomes had throwing passes of 20+ yards as a full-time starter.
Patrick Mahomes’ deep ball suffered
Per Pro Football Focus, Mahomes went 24-76, passing on throws of 20+ yards for 817 yards, two touchdowns, and six interceptions during the regular season and postseason. He was ranked in the bottom half of the league in that statistic among starting quarterbacks.
Compare that to the 2022 season, also sans Hill, when Mahomes went 31-70 for 985 yards, four touchdowns, and zero interceptions. Mahomes threw over 1,000 yards in each of the 2018, 2019, 2021 season/postseason on deep passes.
Andy Reid wants to tweak the offense
According to Adam Teicher with ESPN, the Chiefs intend to make the deep throw a more significant part of their offense in the upcoming season. Reid is trying to get Mahomes to break his habit of settling for the checkdown:
A priority for the Chiefs during the offseason is to increase their number of big pass plays.
They signed one fast wide receiver, Marquise Brown, and drafted another, Xavier Worthy, in the first round. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes said coach Andy Reid is encouraging him to push the ball down the field more often.
“If I don’t, he throws little jabs at me like, ‘Oh, you want to throw the checkdown here?”’ Mahomes said as the Chiefs concluded their offseason practices. “I’m like, ‘I got you, Coach; we’re going to push it.’ It has been fun.”
One thing to note about the Chiefs’ desire to increase the number of deep passes is that the 2023 Chiefs attempted approximately the same number of passes of 20+ yards as they had in previous seasons with Mahomes. The Chiefs’ change in strategy could be jarring for the opposing secondary.
The Chiefs have the speed at receiver to make the deep ball a part of their game for as many snaps as they want on a given Sunday. The offensive line is still a work in progress, especially at the left tackle spot, as they replace Donovan Smith. If Mahomes has time to throw, the Chiefs could have one of the more explosive offenses in the league again after an uncharacteristically tame 2023 season.
