It's far from a hot take to point out that the Kansas City Chiefs owe it to Patrick Mahomes to make the quarterback's life a bit easier. Over the past three years, a lack of balance and creativity left the margin for error impossibly thin.
Mahomes was forced to put on his cape seemingly every week to find a way to deliver a win, and last season this style cost the Chiefs. Mahomes was dealt the brunt of the offensive pressure and, in doing so, forced himself to make a play too often and ended up scrambling, putting himself in harm's way.
This resulted in a torn ACL and a clear wake-up call that things must change moving forward. Just because the Chiefs have the benefit of Mahomes doesn't mean the franchise should take advantage of this by not affording him the necessary help. It's time to make life easier on the league's best quarterback, and the path to this remains incredibly clear as we approach the preseason.
Kansas City must find a way to lean on its newly added talent at running back and provide a balance the offense has lacked each of the past two seasons. Kenneth Walker III is expected to provide this, with no reason to believe the Chiefs' rushing attack will be anything but greatly improved, not only due to the presence of Walker, but also the return of offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy.
Kansas City needs to realize that Mahomes shouldn't have to do it all by himself
Another piece of this that cannot be overlooked is both Rashee Rice and Xavier Worthy showing up and actually delivering on their respective potential. Both receivers are supremely talented, but have been far from consistent in their careers. With how the team is currently built, both pass catchers are vital to taking pressure off Mahomes and allowing the offense to flow at its full potential.
Kansas City's attempts to add a secondary plan if Rice or Worthy don't play up to expectations were futile, forcing their ascension to be all-important. This leads us to the last part of the equation, which is an offensive line that has received an unfair level of heat this offseason from pundits around the league.
Parting ways with Jawaan Taylor can be argued as an addition by subtraction based on the consistent mistakes that Taylor made during his tenure, as well as the $20 million in cap space his departure freed up. No question, the new unit is going to need time to gel, but there is potential for this starting five to be one of the better of the Mahomes era.
Kansas City has to hope that all three of these pieces fall into place and take pressure off their three-time Super Bowl MVP quarterback, whom they've asked to carry far too much in recent seasons. If this is the case, the Chiefs will unquestionably be among the league's elite contenders once again.
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