These are the things that keep me up at night as a Chiefs fan.
10.Travis Kelce’s age
Kelce has been an iron man for most of his career. That said, his age is a ticking time bomb. If this passing game is going to have any life, he needs to be a part of it. The rest of the TE’s are not inspiring. That puts a lot of pressure on his old knees to stay healthy (once again) for all 17 games.
9. The secondary.
I think this is one of the deeper units on the team. That said, Snead and Fulton are injury prone. Delaine and Canaday are rookies and Williams is only going into his second year. The safeties have some questions as well. Also, the DL (more on them in a minute) might not be up to the task of generating a pass rush. That puts extra pressure on this group.
8.The Run game
The Chiefs made it a priority to upgrade their RB room this off season. On paper, we look better than last season. However, none of these guys have been true feature backs at this level. Walker has never had more than 226 carries in a season . Emmitt Johnson is a rookie and Brashaud Smith is a converted wr. All three are undersized by NFL standards. KC also doesn’t have a FB(although, they do have one on the PS) and none of their TE’s are great blockers. I also have questions about Andy’s commitment to running the ball and doing so under center.
7.Special Teams
Harrisson Butker has been shaky for a while now. It’s great he can hit a 70 yard FG. But the most critical range of 40 – 50, he is inconsistent. The return game was poor and was not upgraded . The coverage units have not been as strong as they once were. We are going to need special teams to be on point this season. Trends seem to indicate that is wishful thinking.
6.The WR Corps
There are many questions about this group. Can Rashee Rice stay on the field. Can Worthy take the next step. Can Royals or Allen make an impact. Does Mahomes have trust in these guys? I don’t see this as a very formidable group. Look at Denvers wr corps and compare it to ours. I rest my case.
5.The Pass rush
I think this group is younger, more athletic and has more upside than a season ago. That said, who scares you if you are a DC?Karlaftis is glorified J.A.G. He is average . Gillotte is coming off injury. FAU is still trying to find his groove and R.Mason Thomas is a rookie. There really isn’t one guy you can count on to consistently rush the passer. Spags might have to rely on the blitz once again.
4.Andy Reid and Father time.
I am worried that Andy has lost his fastball. I fear he has lost the ability to adapt and adjust. I am concerned he is a stubborn old man who will go back to the same crap that didn’t work at the first sign of trouble. EB isn’t advertised as an idea guy. So where are these new schemes and plays going to come from?
3.Offensive Tackles
Josh Simmons is already out with a back injury. Those can be very trick for an OL. Does anyone have faith in Jaylon Moore at RT? The Chiefs don’t seem to. With Simmons injury history/ issues and Moore’s mediocre play, Mahomes could really be forced to test how his repaired knee because he could be running for his life right out the gate. Speaking of which………
2.Patrick Mahomes
Fans are taking it for granted that we will see vintage Mahomes. We haven’t seen vintage Mahomes for several years when he was healthy. So what makes us think we are guaranteed to get him game one of the season. Plus he has his starting LT out, a pedestrian wr corps and an old TE. I really do fear him getting hurt again this season. I think it’s a strong possibility.
1.The overall depth on this team.
This team is razor thin when it comes to depth. They can’t afford a rash of injuries . It is a long season and injuries are a given. It comes down to how cruel are the football gods going to be to this team. Even a moderate amount of injuries could be enough to sink the season.
And I haven’t even gotten to the brutal schedule. I think this team has a lot of potential problems. We are going to need a lot of lady luck if we want to be a playoff contender.