Despite some pass-protection woes, Patrick Mahomes is playing some of the best football of his career. Unfortunately, that cannot be said of his supporting cast. More specifically, his receiving corps isn't coming close to living up to what they're capable of.
Once again, the pass-catchers have been a talking point for all the wrong reasons. They haven't gotten much from anyone not named Rashee Rice. And with Marquise "Hollywood" Brown about to become a free agent, there may not be many incentives to bring him back.
Marquise Brown Needs to Earn His Next Deal in The Next Weeks
Brown has been a major disappointment since he arrived in Missouri. He missed most of his first season with the team because of an injury, and even though he's been healthy this season, he's done nothing to show he deserves to stick around.
Through the first 12 games of the season, the former Baltimore Ravens draft pick has hauled in just 41 receptions on 60 targets. He has 459 yards and 5 receiving touchdowns, and he has failed to live up to the hype as a potential big-play specialist. Even when Rice was suspended and Xavier Worthy was out with an injury, backup WR Tyquan Thornton outplayed and outproduced Brown.
It hasn't mattered what role they give Brown, either. He's had games as the short-range target on screens. He turned 16 targets into just 99 yards in Week 1 and 5 targets into 30 yards in Week 2. He's also got his chances as a deep threat, with an average depth of target north of 14 yards in four different games. But he still averaged just 8.5 yards per target in those contests.
But the Chiefs need all the help they can get right now, and anyone who steps up down the stretch will be embraced with open arms. Brown could be one breakout game away from becoming a focal point of the offense for a potential playoff run.
This team still has to face three elite defenses (Houston Texans, Los Angeles Chargers, and Denver Broncos), and taking a step forward against the best teams might be just enough for the Chiefs to not only keep him involved but to make him a long-term part of their plans with a new contract this offseason.
Along with Brown, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Tyquan Thornton are set to become free agents next offseason. Thornton is the youngest and has flashed the most upside, but that also means the Chiefs could be outbid for his services. Smith-Schuster seems to be an Andy Reid favorite at this point, but he's certainly not done anything to solidify his next contract. Brown, as things stand now, looks like the least likely of the three to land a new deal.
That makes these next five games (and, hopefully, a few more in the playoffs after that) absolutely crucial for his future in KC.