Kansas City underwent sweeping changes this offseason, leaving the Chiefs with an overhauled receiving corps led by free agents JuJu Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Those additions, along with rookie Skyy Moore, were prompted by the surprise departure of Pro Bowl deep threat Tyreek Hill, who, upon failing to secure a long-term extension, was traded to the Dolphins for five picks including a 2022 first-rounder. Addressing the media after Wednesday’s practice, Patrick Mahomes conceded the offense will look a bit different in Kansas City’s post-Tyreek Era, preemptively warning fantasy football players this might not be the year to roster Chiefs receivers.
“It’s not going to be just necessarily Tyreek and Travis [Kelce] every single week, where it’s like one or the other is having a big game or both,” said Mahomes, teasing a committee approach at wide receiver. “Every single week it’s going to be someone different. So, I'm sorry to all you fantasy football guys, but it's going to come from everywhere, so you're going to have to kind of choose the right guy every week."
Where as defenses would previously game-plan specifically for Hill and Kelce, Mahomes expects considerably more balance in 2022, adding an element of surprise to an offense that struggled at times last season, including early on when the Chiefs got off to a sluggish 3-4 start. No single player can replicate Hill’s downfield wizardry, but the Chiefs are still flush with weapons, boasting a former MVP in Mahomes, a certain Hall-of-Famer in Kelce and a proven slot presence in Smith-Schuster. It’s refreshing to hear a player of Mahomes’ stature speak so candidly, tempering expectations for a team and offense that are still a work in progress, seeking a new identity that might take weeks, if not months, to reveal itself.
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