The Chiefs need Chris Jones and other lessons learned from Week 4

The injuries are finally hurting the Chiefs

Some great news for Kansas City came during warmups before this week’s game when wide receiver Tyreek Hill was able to show off his recovery progress by running routes and catching some passes. Hill looked healthy and ready to go, and it was announced before the game that the star wideout will be evaluated this week for a return to the field as early as next week.

Unfortunately, life without injured players like Hill and left tackle Eric Fisher are finally getting to the Chiefs. In week’s past, Patrick Mahomes looked like he was able to tap any pass catcher on the shoulder and outfit them with a career-best performance. Looking exclusively at the box score, it could be argued that the Chiefs overcame their absences once again. Zero sacks allowed and 123 yards rushing suggest the line stood strong, while 315 yards passing suggest the offense was still as strong as usual.

But a closer look suggests otherwise. Mahomes was 24 of 42 on Sunday from the field, with a passer rating of 81.0—his worst performance of the season by far. This had to do mostly with the line’s shortcomings, as Mahomes was forced to make most of his passes on the run. When outside of the pocket, Mahomes favorite targets tend to be Tyreek Hill, who missed the game with an injury, and Travis Kelce, who was be double teamed and knocked around on most of his routes.

Even the run game is not something to celebrate for the line. Of the 123 rushing yards, only 69 yards came from running backs, and the rest came from Mahomes being forced to scramble.

If K.C. plans on winning games moving forward, they have to find ways to overcome Fisher’s injury. Some better playcalling and blocking schemes could help Cam Erving just enough to help Kansas City deal with the pass rush. Here’s hoping the Chiefs get both players back sooner than later.