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Patrick Mahomes not too long ago turned a father. And whereas that definitely gave the Kansas City Chiefs star a purpose to have fun, he hasn’t precisely loved a cheerful previous couple of weeks from a soccer perspective.
Sadly for the 25-year-old quarterback, his painfully unpleasant offseason simply acquired an entire lot worse. And if his staff doesn’t deal with enterprise this spring, Mahomes received’t have to fret about struggling a second Tremendous Bowl loss in a row.
As a result of given the present state of their offensive line, the Chiefs desperately want reinforcements to present their franchise signal-caller an opportunity at succeeding on his surgically-repaired foot when the 2021 season begins.
Patrick Mahomes went underneath the knife proper after the Tremendous Bowl
Patrick Mahomes suffered a turf toe damage (together with a concussion) in the course of the Chiefs’ playoff matchup towards the Cleveland Browns. Whereas he battled again to return for the AFC championship recreation towards the Buffalo Bills, he nonetheless confronted lingering issues about his ailing foot heading into Tremendous Bowl 55.
Though he tried to increase performs along with his legs, Mahomes couldn’t overcome a obvious lack of cross safety. With Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartz unavailable, Kansas Metropolis’s injury-ravaged offensive line acquired utterly overwhelmed by an onslaught of Tampa Bay Buccaneers defenders.
Mahomes finally spent most of his evening attempting to flee the clutches of Shaquil Barrett, Jason Pierre-Paul, Ndamukong Suh, and whoever else broke by means of.
Todd Bowles’ unit recorded three sacks and two interceptions in a lopsided 31-9 victory. Mahomes not solely did not throw a landing cross however he additionally suffered bodily injury throughout his irritating evening in Tampa.
Regardless of saying his turf toe damage didn’t trouble him within the AFC championship or the Tremendous Bowl, he underwent surgical procedure on Feb. 10. Mahomes’ rehab will reportedly take a number of months, however he’s anticipated to make a full restoration.
The NFL’s largest star received’t have his two longtime tackles defending him anymore
If Tremendous Bowl 55 proved something, it’s {that a} unhealthy offensive line could make even probably the most gifted quarterback in NFL historical past look bizarre.
And after lacking the largest recreation of the season resulting from accidents, neither Eric Fisher nor Mitchell Schwartz will play one other down for the reigning AFC champions. In a merciless accident, Kansas Metropolis will transfer on from the 2 gamers Patrick sorely missed down in Tampa.
On Thursday, the Chiefs launched each of their longtime tackles.
Fisher began 117 video games and earned two Professional Bowl choices in eight seasons with the staff. Nevertheless, after tearing his Achilles within the AFC title recreation, the 30-year-old faces a protracted restoration to get again to full energy. Kansas Metropolis saved practically $12 million by transferring on from the previous No. 1 choose.
In the meantime, Schwartz has quietly ranked as top-of-the-line linemen within the NFL through the years. In 5 seasons with the Chiefs, the towering proper deal with earned three second-team All-Professional honors and one first-team All-Professional choice.
However after a again damage sidelined him for all however six video games in 2020, Schwartz additionally has to discover a new NFL residence. The Chiefs might have trimmed $6.1 million off their books, however they are going to have a troublesome time changing one of many league’s most underrated tackles.
Sadly for Patrick Mahomes, the lack of his two most embellished offensive linemen was only the start of extra unhealthy information.
Mahomes’ painfully disagreeable offseason simply acquired an entire lot worse
RELATED: Patrick Mahomes Surprisingly Put His Own Teammates on Blast After the Chiefs’ Brutal Super Bowl Loss
For Patrick Mahomes, his nightmare offseason acquired an entire lot worse on Thursday afternoon.
Based on the NFL Community’s Tom Pelissero, the Chiefs may even transfer on from yet one more member of Mahomes’ safety squad. Kansas Metropolis will reportedly let Austin Reiter hit the free-agent market. Pelissero’s supply mentioned the 29-year-old heart “is predicted to land elsewhere.”
The 6-foot-3, 305-pound lineman began 32 video games because the Chiefs acquired him off waivers again in 2018. Reiter didn’t miss a single snap in the course of the staff’s magical 2019 title run. He began 12-of-15 video games final season however performed 100% of the offensive snaps within the playoffs.
With three trusted teammates set to play elsewhere in 2021, Mahomes should depend on unfamiliar faces to maintain him protected.
Didn’t we see how that experiment labored out in Tremendous Bowl 55?
And for these saying the Chiefs’ offensive line can solely enhance from that dismal efficiency, the staff doesn’t precisely have the monetary flexibility to signal starting-caliber replacements in free company.
Maybe normal supervisor Brett Veach can pull off some magic within the ensuing months and rebuild a unit that has three enormous holes to fill. If he fails, Mahomes could have an not possible time making his dynasty dream come true.
All statistics courtesy of Pro Football Reference.
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