Chiefs try to survive without Patrick Mahomes, starting vs. Packers on Yahoo Sports app
The good news for the Kansas City Chiefs is nobody else in the AFC West is capable of catching them while Patrick Mahomes is out, however long that might be.
With the Los Angeles Chargers falling far from the ranks of playoff contenders and the Denver Broncos and Oakland Raiders coming off embarrassing losses, the Chiefs’ spot in the AFC West seems very safe no matter who is playing quarterback as Mahomes recovers from a knee injury.
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That doesn’t mean the Chiefs aren’t chasing something bigger. Matt Moore will try to put the Chiefs in the best playoff position possible for Mahomes’ return, and that journey starts Sunday night against the Green Bay Packers, a game that can be live-streamed on the Yahoo Sports app.
The Chiefs’ offense will look different, but it doesn’t mean it can’t be effective.
Can Matt Moore keep Chiefs offense afloat?
Receiver Tyreek Hill didn’t sound concerned after Mahomes was injured last Thursday night.
“Matt came in the game, same mentality and everything,” Hill said. “We're still trying to score every play. We still got the best offense. Everybody ain't missing. We've still got our pieces out there."
While there’s no debating the greatness of Mahomes, Hill makes a good point.
Hill could be the most dangerous receiver in the NFL. His speed makes him incomparable on deep routes. Travis Kelce is having a quiet season, but he’s still among the most talented tight ends in the game. Kansas City has multiple running backs who have had success.
We’ll get to see how valuable Mahomes is to the offense. He’s a phenomenal player and clearly is the biggest reason the Chiefs have been so good the past two seasons. He was MVP last season and had one of the great individual seasons in NFL history. Nobody should deny his greatness. But he’s not carrying bad teammates along. The Chiefs have plenty of good players around him.
Moore steps into a pretty good situation.
Moore has experience
Moore has always been considered one of the league’s best backups. When he has had to start, he has done fairly well. His best stretch came in 2011, when he started 12 games for the Miami Dolphins and threw 16 touchdowns with nine interceptions. Moore has 30 career starts and a 81.2 career passer rating.
Moore has never played in an offense as good as this one. Andy Reid is a fantastic coach. Moore is 35 years old and has started just five games since 2011, but it’s not the worst situation for the Chiefs if Mahomes misses a few weeks. Considering Mahomes was throwing at practice this week and wasn’t ruled out until Friday, it doesn’t seem like he’ll be out too long. If Moore can use his weapons, manage the offense and help Kansas City win a few games, he can keep them in contention for the No. 2 seed in the AFC (we all know New England is running away with the top seed).
The Chiefs will need to put up some points this week. Aaron Rodgers is coming off the first perfect passer rating in his career. The Packers offense might be warming up now that they’re a few games into the Matt LaFleur era. Green Bay is 6-1, though they’ve had the benefit of a schedule front-loaded with home games.
This matchup was supposed to be Rodgers vs. Mahomes, two MVP quarterbacks. That won’t take place Sunday, but what happens next for the Chiefs will also be interesting. How Moore keeps the offense afloat could help shape the AFC playoff picture.
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Frank Schwab is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab
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