The Kansas City Chiefs have officially sounded the alarms.
Patrick Mahomes had to leave the game vs. the Cleveland Browns, and there has been no official word about his status for Saturday’s game vs. the Houston Texans.
Seeing him leave the game on his own power was encouraging, but this is still worrisome.
And even if he’s out there, the Chiefs must protect him.
With that in mind, former Super Bowl champion-turned-analyst Marshall Newhouse pointed out their need to strengthen their offensive line.
“It was two straight weeks of double-digit pressures. He’s just getting hit over and over and over again. And he’s Pat Mahomes, he puts his cape on when he needs to…And so it helps that you’ve got an elite inside three that keeps the pocket relatively clean, but he CANNOT keep getting hit like this,” Newhouse said.
.@MNewhouse73 says the Chiefs' O-line a MAJOR concern and with limited options, KC may need to get creative to figure something out.
“It was two straight weeks of double-digit pressures. He's just getting hit over and over and over again. And he's Pat Mahomes, he puts his cape… pic.twitter.com/bzTjRZHJIl
— DraftKings Network (@DKNetwork) December 16, 2024
As much as Andy Reid has always been a master of hiding his team’s flaws, Mahomes has been constantly rushed, pressured, and hit, and that’s unsustainable.
The Chiefs have struggled with blindside protection for the entirety of the Mahomes era, but they may have reached a new low point this time.
Wanya Morris and Kingsley Suamataia have struggled to keep the former MVP out of harm’s way.
Even if he returns next Saturday or later, he may not be at full strength.
The Chiefs have only lost one game this season, but they don’t look like the dominant team of old.
And if they don’t protect their best and most important players, their chances of getting it done in the playoffs seem quite slim.
NEXT: Dan Orlovsky Says Chiefs Need 1 Player To 3-Peat
