Getty Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II during Week 5.
It’s fair to say that the Kansas City Chiefs offense has yet to fully get rolling here in 2023 despite a nice bounce back performance from quarterback Patrick Mahomes II in Week 5.
Some of that has been due to the inconsistencies at the wide receiver position — where the Chiefs have displayed plenty of depth, even if there is a lack of star talent behind one-of-a-kind tight end Travis Kelce. And although it has not clicked just yet, Mahomes sees this as a strength for KC as the year goes on.
“There’s a lot of young guys out there [in the receiving corps] and we’re going to keep everybody moving and going in the right direction,” the Chiefs QB told reporters after the win in Minnesota, warning: “And I think by the end of the year we’re going to be dangerous because you’re not going to know who’s going to get those opportunities throughout the game.”
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Discusses WR Justyn Ross’ Role in Offense
One of those lesser-known weapons that Mahomes is talking about is second-year wide receiver Justyn Ross. Sure, Ross is a fan favorite within Chiefs Kingdom, but the rest of the NFL may not see him the same way Kansas City supporters do.
Ross had a career-high four targets against the Minnesota Vikings, with two receptions for 28 yards including a 20-yard conversion. Mahomes discussed the youngster’s development after the game.
“I thought he played well,” he replied when asked about Ross. “I mean, everybody knows he has the talent. And so, he made that big-time catch on that second and — I think it was 18 or something like that — and some of those other plays.”
“[Ross] has the talent, we’re going to keep bringing him on,” Mahomes continued. “We’re going to keep moving him around in different positions.”
Later, Mahomes clarified that Ross has “picked up what we’ve given him,” in terms of his understanding of the offense. “I think we’re just trying to find ways to integrate him in the offense,” he explained. “Like I said, we have a lot of guys [at WR] but we see his talent. We see what he can do and the plays that he can make.”
Mahomes finally concluded that “we’re trying to do whatever we can to put him in those positions to go out there and make those plays. And as he gets more and more comfortable — just like any other rookie in a sense — we’ll keep giving him more and more chances to go out there and make plays.”
Chiefs Rookie Rashee Rice Continues to Push for Leading Role in KC WR Corps
Veteran Justin Watson still leads all Kansas City wide receivers in total yardage through the air due to his big-play potential, but rookie Rashee Rice continues to push for the No. 1 role in terms of overall targets along with Kadarius Toney.
On 3rd & 8, Patrick Mahomes connects with rookie WR Rashee Rice for an 8-yard TD. PAT is good.
The emergence of the rookie has coincided with the fall of 2022 second rounder Skyy Moore, who Mahomes only targeted twice in Week 5. Both were caught for 11 yards.
Rice, on the other hand, caught four of five attempts for 33 yards and a touchdown. He now has 173 receiving yards and two touchdowns on the season off 24 targets. That final number is second only to Kelce.
Along with Moore, veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling has struggled to keep pace with Watson, Rice and Toney. With Ross entering the fold, MVS could be minimized even further moving forward.
This is good news for the 2024 offseason, being that the Chiefs can save $12 million by parting ways with Valdes-Scantling next spring.
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Patrick Mahomes Issues Warning About Chiefs Offense After Week 5