There is a plan for Patrick Mahomes and it does not involve 2017

Everyone is clamoring for the Patrick Mahomes era to start in Kansas City. So why has Andy Reid not put him in yet with Alex Smiths recent bad play?

Whoa. the Patrick Mahomes hype train is going full speed now for Chiefs Kingdom. From our red-hot start to losing to the New York Giants and now the Buffalo Bills, it seems the Kansas City Chiefs are doing the exact opposite of what they did in 2015. Because of this current slide, the cries for Patrick Mahomes have become deafening, to say the least. I have even found myself hoping to see a quarterback change soon due to Alex Smith’s continued regression from MVP to the good old Smith we all know and love. Andy Reid has come out and said that he does not plan on a quarterback change anytime soon, and everyone seems to be scratching their heads wondering why.

To me, it seems to be a pretty simple answer: the Chiefs came into the season with a plan, and they are not going to deviate from it unless they absolutely must. The Chiefs were giving us all the signals even before the season started that 2017 is not the year they are pushing to make the Super Bowl. If you look at how the Chiefs drafted this past season you can’t deny that they were drafting purely for the future.

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First-round pick Patrick Mahomes was a known project quarterback when he was drafted, and we all knew he would sit at least one season before he would take over the team. Then we drafted Tanoh Kpassagnon who was also a gigantic (pun intended) project coming out of Villanova. Since joining the team, he has taken reps at both defensive end and outside linebacker which tells me the team is still trying to figure out exactly where he will fit on the team.

When you see our top two picks go to project players when there were immediate needs at corner and pass rusher, it should be sending the signal that this year is not the year. I know people who would still go back to this day and reverse the trade for Mahomes to acquire a corner, and while I disagree with them, this season has shown just how much we needed help there.

I know a lot of you are furiously typing at me right now that Mahomes should be able to throw screen passes so what’s the difference between him and Alex Smith? When you make a big move like the Chiefs did and gave up some major draft capital to acquire a quarterback, you also must protect that investment.

I am sure that Mahomes would benefit from playing some real games and would have no problem throwing those same passes. He would also get the chance to get used to the speed of the NFL. However, every play he is out there, he could also very well get seriously injured. If Mahomes tore his ACL in a game this late in the year, he most likely would not even be available to play until late next season. So, the questions become are you ready to possibly jeopardize next season for this one? I think most people do not believe that this team can win a Super Bowl as it is currently constructed, so why throw him out there?

Next: What's wrong with Alex Smith?

I do not think the Chiefs ever planned on having Mahomes play no matter how well he did in training camp or throughout the year. The Chiefs planned on having Smith play the entire season to increase his trade value (which is probably non-existent now) and to give him one last shot and taking this team to a super bowl before we move on from him. Would we all love to see Mahomes come in and light it up like Deshaun Watson did earlier this season? Of course, but as we have seen from Reid and company, they do not seem very keen on moving on from their plan.

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