The 2024 NFL season was a nightmare for Patrick Mahomes. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback was sacked 36 times during the regular season, and experts agree it could have been worse. Still, head coach Andy Reid has made only minimal investments in protecting his franchise star.
While it’s true the Chiefs reached their third consecutive Super Bowl despite a barrage of injuries, the offensive line stayed largely healthy. Yet Mahomes spent most of the season scrambling to survive.
Super Bowl LIX served as the harshest indictment of the offensive line’s struggles. The Philadelphia Eagles sacked Mahomes six times, steamrolling their way to victory. Despite this, Reid and the Chiefs’ front office seem blind to their quarterback’s dire need for better protection.
Mahomes still unprotected geading into 2025
CBS Sports analyst Josh Edwards points out three major roster needs for the Chiefs in 2025: a defensive tackle, a running back, and a left guard. The latter two are especially critical to keeping Mahomes upright.
Although the team drafted left tackle Josh Simmons and signed Jaylon Moore in free agency to shore up Mahomes’s blind side, the left guard position remains vulnerable. With only Mike Caliendo and Kingsley Sumataia on deck, some analysts say the Chiefs need more competition to solidify the line.
The running back situation is even murkier. Isiah Pacheco’s injury last season exposed the team’s lack of depth at a position crucial for offensive balance. Without a serious rushing threat, defenses focused squarely on Mahomes.
Who’s lining up behind Mahomes?
Neither the draft nor free agency produced a new running back for the Chiefs. Pacheco returned late in 2024, and the front office re-signed Kareem Hunt for another year as a backup option. But according to reporters like Aryan Mamtani of Essentially Sports, Kansas City is overdue for fresh legs in the backfield.
The team’s last major acquisition before signing Hunt on an emergency basis was Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who departed last year. If the Chiefs hope to extend their run as the NFL’s newest dynasty, they’ll need to invest more heavily-not just in Mahomes’s protection, but in the offensive depth needed to keep defenses guessing.
Read the full article here
