Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs back working on the long ball

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Two of the archetypal 5 plays astatine a caller Kansas City Chiefs signifier league were Patrick Mahomes passes that traveled good down the field. Neither was caught, though, including 1 that was dropped by rookie wide receiver Jalen Royals, which near Mahomes with his hands connected his caput successful frustration.

More heavy throws from Mahomes were to travel that time and though not each resulted successful completions, it was much the process that funny the Chiefs. They privation the agelong shot backmost successful their discourtesy and judge the offseason signifier tract is wherever it volition start.

The Chiefs emphasized incorporating large walk plays past twelvemonth astatine this clip arsenic well, but they seldom materialized successful the regular season. They are alert that talking astir getting them unsocial won't execute the desired result. They'll person to enactment for it arsenic well.

"Talk is cheap, right?'' violative coordinator Matt Nagy said. "You can't [just] speech astir it. You've got to beryllium capable to bash it. So I deliberation it's a mentality of each time successful signifier trying to marque definite you accent not lone the value of talking astir it but past doing it successful practice.

"It's our occupation arsenic coaches to stress it much and past fto these guys spell retired there, and past their mindset, too, is cutting it escaped each present and past and not each 1 is going to beryllium cleanable [or] complete, but ... truthful acold up to this constituent it's been beauteous with the onslaught mindset."

Last season, Mahomes and the Chiefs were adjacent to past successful the league successful walk completions (12) that traveled downfield astatine slightest 20 yards beyond the enactment of scrimmage. They had 47 specified attempts, the fourth-lowest full successful the league. In all, the Chiefs had 42 walk plays of 20 yards oregon more, the sixth lowest.

The reasons were many. Neither of their 2 apical seasoned wide receivers, Rashee Rice and Hollywood Brown, played overmuch during the play due to the fact that of injuries. The Chiefs, who went done 4 starting tackles, didn't ever support Mahomes good and erstwhile they did, helium didn't ever look to spot it would clasp up.

Rice and Brown are back, joining second-year receiver Xavier Worthy astatine wideout. The Chiefs drafted 1 near tackle, Josh Simmons, successful the archetypal circular and signed another, Jaylon Moore, successful escaped bureau successful the anticipation of solving their extortion problems.

Mahomes, with encouragement from manager Andy Reid and Nagy, has been investigating it successful practice.

"We're fast,'' Mahomes said of the wide receivers. "I deliberation that's astir apt the happening that stands retired the most.

"We person guys that tin roll. Our occupation is to trial the defenses down the tract and we person to get backmost to doing that if we privation to unfastened up different guys underneath. Coach Reid has challenged maine this offseason to propulsion the shot down the field, fto guys person chances to marque plays and past erstwhile we get that backmost to wherever we privation to beryllium successful our modular that we judge we should have, past we tin travel backmost to the underneath stuff."

Worthy was drafted successful the archetypal circular past twelvemonth due to the fact that of his quality to marque catches down the field. He ran the fastest 40 clip (4.21 seconds) successful scouting harvester past successful 2024.

But helium caught lone 3 passes past play that traveled successful the aerial much than 20 yards past the enactment of scrimmage. He led the Chiefs' wide receivers with 59 receptions, but his 10.8-yard-per-catch mean was acold little than what the Chiefs hoped it would be.

Worthy progressed arsenic past play went along. He caught 20 passes successful the archetypal 9 games but 39 implicit the last eight. He besides had 19 catches successful 3 postseason games, including 8 for 157 yards and 2 touchdowns successful Super Bowl LIX.

"The extremity of past twelvemonth was benignant of similar a stepping chromatic for me," Worthy said. "Just learning and getting a amended consciousness for what Pat likes. I consciousness that got amended astatine the extremity of the year. Just proceed that and proceed that momentum."

Worthy showed past play helium was a versatile player. He was inactive effectual contempt getting the shot mostly connected shorter passes.

The Chiefs privation to unfastened up the deep-reception portion of Worthy's crippled arsenic well. He caught successful the extremity portion a 50-yard touchdown walk from Mahomes successful past year's Super Bowl, a play they anticipation serves arsenic a motion of things to come.

"He's not conscionable fast,'' Mahomes said. "He tin marque plays. You saw that with immoderate of the contested catches that helium made benignant of towards the extremity of the season, if you deliberation backmost to the Bills crippled oregon adjacent the past drawback helium had successful the Super Bowl. He's idiosyncratic that volition spell up and marque a play connected the shot and truthful my occupation is to springiness him much opportunities.

"Even erstwhile he's moving with idiosyncratic and it's one-on-one, propulsion the ball, fto him spell up determination and marque a play. I deliberation adding Hollywood being healthier and past having Rashee backmost retired determination is going to springiness him much and much opportunities to agelong the field."

As the Chiefs cognize good from past season's passing problems, overmuch has to spell their mode for the downfield crippled to work. Mahomes needs clip and indispensable beryllium consenting to spot it, the receivers request to get unfastened and Mahomes has to person the willingness to fto it fly.

The remainder of the load falls connected Reid and Nagy.

"We person to beryllium capable to enactment the plays successful that springiness [Mahomes the accidental for a large play], but past astatine the aforesaid constituent successful clip you've got to propulsion the trigger, you've got to instrumentality that changeable downfield,'' Nagy said. "We've got to effort to enactment successful the close plays and past evidently telephone it astatine the close time. But it's a mindset and you've got to instrumentality to it and it's constant, each azygous day. Not conscionable each week. It's each azygous time and past it conscionable becomes reality.''