Chiefs roster evaluation: Patrick Mahomes cements his role as NFL’s best in 2020

What we learned?

In 2018 we learned that Kansas City has a transcendent talent at quarterback in Patrick Mahomes. We learned that when he’s at his best, an unstoppable force, a generational talent.

What we learned in 2019 is that even when he’s not at his best, he’s still elite. Mahomes is also so remarkably consistent that he is truly matchup-proof. It would seem to be an exaggeration to say that any player is incapable of having a bad game. But we still just haven’t seen it. Mahomes has now suited up for the Chiefs in 36 games that have mattered, and he has had the team in position to win every. single. one.

After 5,000 and 50, Mahomes still had doubters. They said he wouldn’t be able to win without Kareem Hunt. They said the Madden Curse would get him. They questioned his ability to perform when opponents had a year’s worth of game film on him, for crying out loud.

Moving forward, the expectation has to be that Mahomes continues to carry himself with his rare maturity, staying out of trouble off the field, and not losing his contagious passion for the game. Those are the only things that could ever deter his path to becoming a Hall of Fame player. The stats and the wins will come if he keeps doing what he’s doing.

It would of course help for the team to prioritize the offensive line in the long haul, but that’s another topic for another day. The fact is, there is no single player in the NFL with a higher bar right now than Mahomes. There is no other ladder for him to climb now except longevity. He’s played in a Pro Bowl; he’s won the MVP and the Super Bowl MVP. He’s on top of the world.

The question now is how he responds when every opponent meets the Chiefs with the mindset that they are playing the Super Bowl Champions. Mahomes has met every other question with a “Yes, I can,” so there’s not one reason to think that he will not continue to meet every expectation with merit.

Behind him on the depth chart, there are more questions than answers. Soon Mahomes will sign on the dotted line and become the highest-paid football player in league history, leaving little cap room for another player at the same position. But the expectation has to be that the team will not leave themselves completely exposed should Mahomes have to miss a couple games, like he did in 2019. When you are so invested into winning Super Bowls right now, you should be insured to be able to win without your best player.

The team already has a quarterback whisperer in Reid. Mahomes’ backup cannot be a 40-year-old mentor who by the way, can’t really play football anymore. His backup cannot be an undrafted free agent with no experience. Brett Veach and Andy Reid should be charged with the responsibility of prioritizing the position so that all the hard work and preparation for planning to win multiple Super Bowls are not promptly cut short due to one injury.

The team may indeed employ Henne or Moore in 2020, but they won’t keep both. Eventually they will turn to the practice of drafting and developing a young backup, and possibly flipping him for draft picks after a few years.

Chiefs fans are not accustomed to this. We are used to finding someone else’s leftovers and hoping to squeeze another season or two out of them. Chiefs fans can now embrace the peace that comes with “knowing who your QB is next year, and the year after that, and the year after that,” but here we are, on top of the mountain. The challenge now is to stay here.