KC Chiefs: Four AFC West players who could regress in 2019
By Chris Clark
Patrick Mahomes
No Chiefs fan will want to see the name Patrick Mahomes on this list. The reality is, it’s not such a bad thing to see him here. After throwing for 50 touchdowns and over 5,000 yards in 2018, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him take a step back in 2019.
This doesn’t mean, though, that he’ll regress as a quarterback altogether. As great as Mahomes was last season, he still left plays on the field. It’s likely that he’ll learn from the things he missed and become an even better quarterback this season.
But will his stats show a little regression? They likely will.
Only two other quarterbacks have ever thrown for 50 or more touchdowns in a single season – Peyton Manning and Tom Brady – and neither quarterback has done it twice. If two future first-ballot Hall of Famers didn’t do it (it’s likely that Brady won’t do it again), Mahomes will have to work hard to make it happen again.
One of these big reasons that Mahomes likely won’t put up another 50 touchdowns is that he won’t need to. As the Chiefs defense looks to improve, hopefully, Mahomes won’t have to put up big numbers just to stay ahead to win games. His talent will continue to help Kansas City build a comfortable lead and the defense should be improved enough to keep it.
Even if he doesn’t get to the 50 and 5,000 marks again in 2019, a 40 and 4,000 season will be easily attainable. The most interesting part here is that even if Mahomes’ numbers are less, he’ll still be a better quarterback in year two as the starter.
The good news for Chiefs fans is this ultimately won’t be considered a real regression.