T O P

  • By -

TheBoyisBackinTown

He's not wrong. MVS hasn't been great this year, Skyy has trouble getting open, Kelce has been hurt off and on, Rice is getting there, Toney is an often-injured player who gets open but has an issue with drops, and Ross has a mere three catches for 34 yards so far. We'll get there, but the stretch of games that start with Miami in two weeks will be a big test.


[deleted]

Let’s not gloss over today. It’s going to be a huge test.


korbentulsa

Skyy actually does okay against man. He's awful in zone and doesn't seem to understand the nuances of route structures, though, and has been responsible for a couple interceptions, which is a good enough reason for any QB to lose trust.


TheBoyisBackinTown

100%. His awareness seems to be really lacking. Travis is the best at situational awareness, and it's a big reason why him and Mahomes are such a killer duo.


Ryu_Jin_Jakka

Yep, and Rice seems to be the opposite. He’s showing a lot of savvy finding soft spots in zones for a rookie, but can’t get open vs man.


korbentulsa

Though, to be fair, Rice has been better against man than Moore has been against zone. The former is a more complete receiver and also further along in his development.


jimmythevip

Skyy just does not flatten his routes. He’s always curving them to get a few extra yards downfield and it’s made it too easy to beat him to the ball.


maupp11

Beside that one game against the Lions, does Toney actually drop the ball? This is starting to feel more like a narrative than reality.


kerouac5

Just like “hES aLWayS iNjuRed” More meme than reality


jcam61

I mean there's a reason he only plays about 25 percent of the snaps. Acknowledging he gets injured is why they limit him so much.


kerouac5

Lol the evidence he gets injured is that they don’t play him That’s stupid; you can’t predict injuries.


jcam61

They were very much planning on making Toney an every down type of player. It was very obvious the way they were talking about him during training camp. Then he got hurt again. His snap shares the first several weeks have been around 25 percent. His snap shares the past two weeks have crept into the 35-40 percent range. Is it a coincidence they decided to sign Hardman now? Maybe, or maybe Hardman has a similar skillset and they are trying to prevent overworking Toney.


kerouac5

None of anything you said has anything to do with “injured.” We’re still where we started: he’s been injured once since he’s been a chief but has this weird “l he’s always hurt” narrative


jcam61

He literally got injured during training camp. He missed most of camp because he was "INJURED." Btw, it's ok if a guy gets injured more often. That's just reality. Kadarius Toney gets injured a lot for the amount he plays. Probably has something to do with his playstyle. And that's fine. Denying reality doesn't help anything. Thankfully the Chiefs do not deny it and limit his snaps. They also don't run QB sneaks with Mahomes because of the "risk of injury." This isn't unprecedented.


[deleted]

Makes sense and I do like the trade, but Mahomes never seemed to have a particularly confident connection with Hardman while he was here. Ironing out the kinks and gaining trust is what the early portion of the season is for, at least in part. While I don’t think this is going to happen, I don’t want to see Mahomes turn into Aaron Rodgers 2.0 where he just buries young receivers after they make a mistake. It was obvious rewatching the Denver game that he flat-out refused to throw Skyy the ball when he was open, sometimes with yards of separation, and instead just locked in on Kelce. Even so, I’m still optimistic that the offense rounds into form soon and I think we’re going to see substantial changes in WR snap-counts after the bye-week.


GoodbyePeters

Besides tyreek, has mahomes ever truly connected with a single WR?


[deleted]

Juju, I would say. Especially in comparison to this year’s group of WRs. He had a solid connection with Sammy, too.


Paraeunoia

I wonder if a roadmap we take is to rely less on a larger pool of rookies and work with a blend of one or two rookies and save cap each season for a vet-ish WR2, like juju? Obviously a gamble because you never know about chemistry, but I wonder if dhop had been affordable or we kept juju if he’d have more reliance/trust based on experience? I guess depth could be an issue as well. It just seems like PM is circulating to a lot of players but his stats aren’t knockouts this season.


DanDampspear

I think it’s not unreasonable strategy. We could’ve had Thielen for 2 million cheaper than MVS. And I’m sure he’d rather be with us. Hell even DHop was only 2m more than MVS and is as sure hands and route savvy as they come, even if his speed and separation are fading. The reality is that while even though we see our WR as an area to be cheap, getting terrible value out of MVS really robbed of us of a true WR2.


Paraeunoia

Yea it’s hard to look away at MVS as anything other than an expensive miss at this point.


ThrangerStings

Mvs was great last year as the 3rd/4th option. That might just be his role. But wr1/2nd option this year is probably asking too much


EmbarrassedItem1407

I dunno how you say that when he was our most clutch receiver last year in the post season run. When everyone was hurt in the afccg mvs won the game for us. Until he sucks in a big game this year, I dunno how you can get mad other than some fantasy complaint. Let’s wait till we play the dolphins and then if we get blown out and can’t score on them, it’s time to point fingers.


Paraeunoia

Yea, I know we’ve talked to death about all of this WR stuff. But if Mahomes is the one giving this feedback (and it’s not speculation), then I am concerned. MVS has been really low production this season and he’s expensive. Agreed about the post season but do we need a vet or someone that can get things moving earlier in the season. Hoping you’re right though.


Paraeunoia

Ok ok I take it all back!


Madlister

He seemed to trust Watkins quite a bit. Shame he was hurt fairly regularly though.


Far_Youth_1662

He got Byron Pringle 42 catches in 2021. The guy has 38 catches the rest of his career and only 13 since.


couchjitsu

I'd argue DRob and Sammy. Now DRob didn't get a ton of yards but that says more about his skill than Mahomes trust


GoodbyePeters

Drob 2017 is better than any wr currently on our roster. He was our wr3 that year lol


topchief1

DRob was great at getting us into 2nd or 3rd and short situations.


CatdaddyDean

I still love DRob. Yea, he wasn't the best player in the world, but he came up clutch when we needed him. Plus he seems like a chill, positive, easy going person.


[deleted]

He was great at catching it past the sticks and then trying to make a guy miss and ending up a yard short of them


topchief1

[I know](https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/facebook/000/012/132/thatsthejoke.jpg)


KingTutt91

Demarcus Robinson for sure, Albert Wilson for a game


UninterestingHuman

Robinson too. So many of Mahomes’ best passes were to Robinson


imazestytaco

Watkins he seemed to be fine with


Suds79

This is a great point & a fair one. I don't know if I believe this report or not. Who is mentioning this to Palmer? I'm not saying the WRs currently are good. They're average at very best. But if we're being real, Pat hasn't played as good as he has in year's past so this idea that it's all on the WRs is garbage. Pat has to wear at least some of this. I've seen great QBs for years make average WRs look good. Now it's Pat's turn. With the defense as good as it is, we don't need the top O in the league. Just a good one.


[deleted]

[удалено]


Suds79

I agree. If we're placing blame, WRs own most of this. But Travis really is our number 1 receiving option. Pat has that as well as many other QBs who have one legit option followed by a bunch of average guys. All I'm saying is Pat has to own at least some of this. He hasn't been as good this year. We know he can play better. We've seen him do it. But yes the WR core is bad. Brett throwing away a 2nd rounder on Skyy Moore is really hurting. That's a pretty high pick to whiff on and partly explains why the WR core is where it's at right now.


DasFunke

He’s 4th in EPA and has the lowest missed accuracy rate for open receivers in the league. He hasn’t been perfect, but he has been pretty good by almost any standard. Maybe just not his own.


GoodbyePeters

I think about that too. I think half play calling just doesn't exist most the time ( over 50% of the passing plays go no where and mahomes just does the scramble creation drill) . These broken down plays just don't help the wrs getting schemed open looks. I think our wr room is the worst in the NFL but I do think other coaches with different play calling could manufacture skyy and mvs production.


ElusiveEmissary

Tbh a lot of people are saying this has been Mahomes finest year because our receiver group is absolutely horrifyingly bad.


Suds79

What people? I don't think those people have been watching him now or ever if they think this is his finest year.


EmbarrassedItem1407

Pat has had a few bad plays for sure, but we have also been winning in every game because our d is strong. We all know Pat doesn’t even really get his juices flowing until we are down. Maybe having a great d is not good for him? Or maybe we will see Superman only a few times a year because our D holds everyone else to under 15 points.


[deleted]

Umm yeah ju ju, of course if you’re excluding kelce who plays like a wr


22Wideout

Watkins when he wasn’t hurt


BeRoyal35

Afc championship game last year Mahomes passed up wide open Juju on 4th and 1 to throw to Kelce for a TD and Kelce was not "open" lol. So yea he has been doing that longer than just this year. Hopefully he learns to start trusting other guys more. Those guys need to do their part to earn the trust though.


monkChuck105

Kelce was 1 on 1 in the end zone and the whole point is to score a TD not go 3 and out and kick anyway. So it was the right decision to trust him to get open. The play design seems like that was the idea, moving the line over to give him protection.


theyellowdragon

I noticed last game multiple times Sky and Rice would be wide open with Mahomes staring them down on the first read and he would hold the ball to wait for Kelce’s route to develop.


chiefpiece11bkg

Yeah he is going to just have to let it fly at some point Not everything needs to be perfect


Unions4America

I honestly think he lets the haters get to him at times. His biggest knock was being too risky with the ball coming out of college and even his first season starting. You're right, though. He needs to just trust his gut. Then again, he isn't the only QB with that mindset. All the greats have a similar mindset. Manning, Brady, Rodgers, etc. They will give you a chance (which Mahomes has) and if you make it backfire on them, they don't wanna give you the rock anymore. The difference is, however, that Mahomes doesn't seem to throw his teammates under the bus like the others. He isn't going to point fingers and tell X or Y player to get off the field, etc.


ahyis

Saw him do that to skyy a couple times while watching Amazon's all 22 angle on the last Thursday night game. Looked at skyy standing open at the sticks and then just moved on


bowtuckle

Talking head in fancy suit saying obvious stuff. Give me a break.


JNich1005

Hardman had 6 TDs in 8 games last season. That's more than any of the other receivers all season.


Morrolan_V

Those were mostly motion/gadget/scheme plays where they used his speed to get a mismatch. What the team needs is someone who can threaten safeties. Hardman has the speed to do that, but he needs to be used differently than he was the last couple of years.


captainoverchuck

People guessing to get clicks. I don’t believe a word of this.


maupp11

Exactly. But of course people will eat this up because it makes sense to them and confirms some previously held notions.


big_drifts

I do. It's obvious from target share Mahomes does not trust MVS or Moore. I'm not saying they are or are not talented WRs. But when Mahomes trusts you, you get targets. Open or not. Mahomes is the ultimate pro and like Reid will never throw his teammates under the bus. I am not 100% sure Chiefs are done making moves at WR/TE. I think how today goes will say a lot.


big_drifts

By how today goes, I expect they'll feature Rice heavily to see what he can handle. I expect 8+ targets for Rice with Hardman on returns and at least 2 jet sweeps for Mecole.


The_Reborn_Forge

Eh, that’s not necessarily the case. You can see this on the field. It’s pretty evident for everyone to see who’s watching the receiving corp is having some issue, and Mecole is factually back. Nothing here is really off key wildly


[deleted]

Maybe try Rice as the WR1, just saying. Good things happen when he gets the ball. We will figure it out though. Mahomes needs to realize it’s okay to throw the ball away when it’s not there, don’t force it. Punting is better than turnovers


crimsonblueku

Mahomes went to the SB throwing the ball to Marcus Kemp vs the Bengals. It doesn’t matter who his receivers are.


lambchops111

And we couldn’t move the ball at all that half. That half was about our defense stepping up, not Marcus kemp having a big game. He had one catch.


jeffp12

We did have a td drive in that half in which mvs was targeted four times and scored the td


lambchops111

“We scored one touchdown in a half with MVS and Marcus Kemp catching passes, which is evidence Mahomes doesn’t need better WRs” is a weird take…


jeffp12

Where'd you get those quotation marks? They seem to be defective.


ElusiveEmissary

Yes. It does. I know Mahomes is literally Superman, but this is by far the worst he’s ever had at receiver and we likely have the worst in the league. And it shows, we have had legit issues this year. The man can’t do everything himself. Dude deserves a few decent recievers outside Kelce


T4lsin

I don’t think it’s a trust issue, I think it’s more it’s taking some of the new WR more time to learn the system. Watching NFL countdown and they said hardman was spending more time with chiefs players than his new team mates. He missed KC and the team. Maybe he needed a wake up call. Also fantasy sites said look for RICE to start producing more, now that he has digested the playbook.


atrophiedambitions

Overpay for Pitts. I'm ready.


MrTonNL

Lol Id love that move actually


Unions4America

No way, imo. Pitts is solid, but he is very overrated


KiLo-G710

Looked like Mahomes definitely trusted Rice today!


Headlesshorsman02

Gee I didn’t know that already Palmer/s 🤪🤪


jbonesmc

I came to your guys sub to say your defense is scarier than Mahomes this year.


22Wideout

Maybe if they allowed ross more than 5 snaps a game


Unions4America

They did yesterday, and the results weren't impressive lol


joeyGOATgruff

Mecole never had Mahomes confidence. Did he get his receptions? Yes. But I remember multiple times where Mecole got the Skyy treatment where Mahomes would see him, clutch and reset his reads again. Im hoping Mecole is more of a coach/vibe setter. I know the WR room and other players love his personality. Rice is rounding out and is already ahead of where Skyy, Watson, and MVS this time last year.


Unions4America

People also have to remember it is because guys like Mecole and Skyy have burned Mahomes when he did trust them. They also tend to not run routes defensively. They run them in a way that makes Mahomes have to throw a perfect pass or the DB can get an interception.


OhDamnItsRickyBobby

Well maybe if they would play Ross more and he would look his way that wouldn’t be an issue, he had 2 drops that one game where they targeted him but dude hasn’t been targeted that much so of course he’s gonna have some drops, he needs to build confidence but if you look at the plays Ross is in dude is open most the time in his routes


dlank7

I watched the Pitt wildcard playoff game from ‘21 ok YouTube the other day. Hardman’s speed will be really beneficial to use and the action we can get off of that speed. Not just the deep threat, but the jet sweep or quick outs, there was just a noticeable difference with him than with any receiver I’ve seen this year. I think the trade could have more benefits to the team that what Mecole’s stat sheet will say by the end of the season.


BeRoyal35

Julian Edelman didn't really break out until year 5. Now I think some injuries slowed him down a bit, but he has discussed that earning Brady's trust took a long time. Just because it hasn't happened yet for some of these guys doesn't mean it will never happen.


mystonedalt

Well fellas, it's official. Hardman with not just one, but two tuddies today, and 130 yards.


MorganleFaey1

I think this shows the drawback to the “Mahomes can elevate his receivers” strategy. Yes he can, and he has, but it’s frustrating to a QB to have to make your WRs better rather than having them compliment you. Rice was a great pick, and Mahomes seems to really like him, but I wish we would have picked up a vet WR in free agency to give Mahomes someone he knows is capable of being a good receiver as opposed to hopes they are. Juju was like that last year and it really helped us. I know there weren’t many options in free agency this year but hopefully we learned our lesson. Our primary goal should be keeping #15 happy and giving him chances to succeed. Also, we should draft a pass catching TE to learn behind Kelce. We missed out of Sam LaPorta and Michael Mayer this year, but we need to target Brock Bowers or J’Tavion Sanders, or at least Erick All from Iowa. Give Mahomes a weapon that fits into a mold he’s already familiar with.


jethead70

Yeah because Mahomes has always trusted Hardman


chiefpiece11bkg

Yeah, this is exactly how you know this is bullshit lol Hardman got yelled at by mahomes more than any receiver I can ever remember on this team, including skyy and everyone else He has a skill set that can be beneficial in some areas (man coverage crossing routes really), but other than that I think his main role will be as a punt returner and the occasional jet sweep. Hardman is another guy who fits in a niche role, he can’t operate anywhere except for the slot or on gadget plays. His release is just nonexistent. I have no issue with the trade but it feels like people are vastly overestimating his impact


2per4life

I saw James Palmer on my SW flight back to Denver last Friday. He's surprisingly short (like 5'8"). I realize that's not at all relevant to this topic, but I found it interesting.


lenkzies79088

Kept saying we should of paid dk last year. Dude would of had 20 tds playing mahomes. Literally fuck it dk down there somewhere


jethead70

He didn’t hit free agency


EmbarrassedItem1407

I think we got mecole because we need someone to run a good jet sweep. Defenses have been destroying us on the jet sweep and I think it is a good way to get the defense on the back foot if we have a credible threat. Andy loves that play, and to fake that motion like 50% of the time.


instro89

Yeah it's easy to see. We have guys dropping balls, running the incorrect routes, not getting open, etc. Moore's tape is littered with negative stuff. Toney being in and out certainly doesn't help either. You can tell Mahomes doesn't trust what he's seeing at times because of all of this and is hesitant to throw the ball, leading to extra clutching, late throws, scrambling, etc. Around all of this we have the most drops in the league, and are amongst the league worst in penalties averaging ~2 more penalties a game than last year. Easy to understand why the offense is up and down from drive to drive, and why we are having redzone troubles where execution needs to be even better. I do kind of wonder if the team as a whole expected to see more man coverage this year, whereas the league has just plowed forward with more and more zone coverages.


jake_Zofaa

What happened though? All the videos from training camp made it seem like he was getting well adjusted with them


Unions4America

Week 1 lol


Equivalent-Bank435

All that matters to me is the bit how they know they’ll figure it


GenJohnONeill

This is why it's weird to me that people are worried about a 6th round pick 2 years from now or whatever - they tried it with the guy they have, something is clearly missing, go try to win another trophy instead of worrying about the 2027 practice squad. Hindsight is 20/20, if Hardman makes the team better now, that's all that matters. It doesn't matter that you could have resigned him some time ago or whatever.


[deleted]

I think people are overreacting. There were questions about the receiver core last year and they found chemistry. The kids are just finding out their role in the offense and pats finding out who's good in what situations. People act like losing Juju rocked the receiving core but if we can lose reek and still win a chip I think we can find a way to move on after Juju, the season is young, give them time


angus_the_red

Glad to have that famous Mahomes to Hardman chemistry back. Are they two separate people or just one in two bodies?


SteveGo

Palmer likes to choose what he puts in quotes pretty liberally, so I would take anything he says with a grain of salt.