While it's never fun when football games go away, there are at least still plenty of happenings in the first few months of the NFL offseason. In March, of course, you've got the big free agency boom, followed by the draft in April, and then the schedule release in mid-May. But after that, outside of OTAs, there's really not a lot going on until training camps get going in late July.
As such, with the vast majority of rosters pretty much set and every club knowing when and where they're going to play each game, this is the time for fans and pundits alike to opine on just about every single aspect of the next season.
One such example comes from Bleacher Report's Brad Gagnon, who recently took some time to offer up what he believes would be the "dream 2026 season scenario" for each of the 32 teams, using just one sentence on every club. And here's what he came up with for the Kansas City Chiefs:
"Patrick Mahomes returns in time to put together a bounce-back season with a bump in support from Kenneth Walker III as they get the dynasty back on track with a classic Super Bowl run."
It would have been nice to see something about how Kansas City's new-look defense would thrive despite some big losses during the offseason, but it's certainly no secret that as Mahomes goes, the Chiefs will go, so I certainly understand Gagnon going in this direction. And throwing Walker in there as well was undoubtedly a necessity.
Kenneth Walker should be able to take some of the pressure off of a returning Patrick Mahomes
Mahomes, of course, continues to recover from the torn left ACL and LCL he suffered last December in a Week 15 defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers, a loss that officially knocked Kansas City out of postseason contention.
As the Chiefs' Week 1 matchup for the 2026 campaign against the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football comes exactly nine months to the day since Mahomes went down, there's naturally a chance that he may not be ready to go for the opener, as his type of injury typically needs nine to 12 months to fully heal.
All signs point to his rehab going smoothly, however, and even if he does start the year on the PUP list, the Broncos, at least on paper, are really the only tough team Kansas City will face the first four weeks, as the other three games are against the Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, and Las Vegas Raiders.
And then there's the early Week 5 bye, so one could easily assume that the two-time NFL MVP will be back in Week 6 at the latest. So, if Justin Fields can get the Chiefs three wins in that opening stretch, they'll be in good shape.
Now, as for Walker, there have been those concerned that the reigning Super Bowl MVP may not be able to carry the load, as it's certainly no secret that he shared touches with Zach Charbonnet over the last few years with the Seattle Seahawks.
But let's not forget that when Walker was the guy as a rookie, he rushed for 1,050 yards and finished second in the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year voting, losing only to New York Jets wideout Garrett Wilson. And when Charbonnet went down in the playoffs, Walker stepped up and tallied 313 yards and four touchdowns in the Seahawks' three postseason victories.
So, he'll certainly be able to bear some of the burden, and that goes for whether Mahomes is ready to roll in Week 1 or not. The Chiefs paid a lot of money to bring Walker to town, and most are expecting Kansas City to hit the ground a bit more in 2026 to take some of the pressure off Mahomes.
That doesn't mean No. 15 won't be doing the things we've come accustomed to seeing him do, but the balance should help the Chiefs run some clock to take some pressure off the aforementioned new-look defense.
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