4 nightmare scenarios for the Chiefs offense in 2023

Our worst nightmare comes to life

This is the part I mentioned up top about superstition. If something were to happen to Patrick Mahomes next season, I would not be able to live with myself. Somehow, some way, I would contribute any 2023 injury to the defending MVP and Super Bowl MVP to a blog that I wrote in June. It would tear me up inside and I may just pen my resignation in a much-shorter-than-2000-words finale blog here at Arrowhead Addict.

Having said that, there is no more important (ahem, valuable) player to any sports franchise in all of sports than Patrick Mahomes. If the Chiefs' offense is a Lamborghini, then Mahomes is without question the V12 motor that puts out 819 horsepower. Since he stepped on the field for the first time in 2018, Mahomes has been the best player in the most important position in sports. It took a while for the rest of the sports world to get with the program on that, but it's now unanimously agreed upon unless you're Ja'Marr Chase. An injury to Mahomes in 2023 would be a death knell to the Chiefs' offense for many reasons, but let's take a look at how it could potentially impact them over the span of the season.

Say Mahomes does what he did in 2019 and misses 2-3 weeks (2 games) with a minor injury. There are pockets of the schedule where the Chiefs could salvage a couple of wins. During weeks 2 to 4, Kansas City sees Jacksonville (toss-up), Chicago (likely win) and the Jets (toss-up). That would put the season starting out at either 2-2 or 1-3. A steep hill to climb. The second easiest portion of the schedule would come from October 12 through November 26 when the Chiefs see the Broncos, Chargers, Broncos, Dolphins, Eagles, and Raiders. Still, yet there are 3 out of 5 matchups with playoff teams from a year ago including the 2022 NFC Champions.

What I'm saying is there is not a good time on this gauntlet of a schedule for the Chiefs to have to worry about Blaine Gabbert—who is 13-35 in his career as a starter—or Shane Buechele (who never started a game in his career) leading them to victory. An extended injury from Mahomes would without question extinguish any hope the Chiefs have of even making the playoff in 2023, let alone making a run at another Lombardi.

This roster is built around the fact that the Chiefs have the best quarterback in the game. Take that away, and the team is a complete shell of itself. In all of the doomsday scenarios in all of the world, this one would be the most catastrophic for Chiefs Kingdom to endure.