There has been no shortage of speculation that the Kansas City Chiefs could trade for a wide receiver ahead of the November 5 NFL trade deadline. But Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes‘s comments on Wednesday, October 16, might tell us all we need to know regarding the team’s eagerness to add to the receiver room.
“I have extreme confidence with the guys that are on that football field,” Mahomes said of Kansas City’s receivers during his press conference. “I mean, they’ve won games, they’ve won Super Bowls, they’ve made plays in big moments and Brett Veach does a great job of bringing players in that can step up whenever their number is called.
“Every time I step on that football field, I feel like we have the best ability to win. I think that’s a credit to Brett Veach and Coach [Andy] Reid bringing in guys that really get after it and put in the work to be great every single day.”
Patrick Mahomes’s Praise Comes After Productive Week 5 Outing
Though we shouldn’t have expected Mahomes to say anything different about his teammates, his praise for the receiver room is warranted when considering the offense’s recent production.
Against the New Orleans Saints in Week 5, which was Kansas City’s first game without receiver Rashee Rice, Mahomes completed 28-of-39 pass attempts for a season-high 331 passing yards. JuJu Smith-Schuster, who filled the role left behind by Rice, caught a season-high seven passes and led the team with 130 receiving yards. Tight end Travis Kelce also had his best game of the season with nine catches for 70 yards.
The Chiefs’ passing attack against the Saints was very similar to what we saw during the 2022 season when Kelce and Smith-Schuster were Mahomes’s top targets. And we know the team overall found plenty of success that season, as it ended with them hoisting the Lombardi Trophy.
It’s possible that Mahomes, the Chiefs coaching staff, and the front office truly feel confident in what the team’s current receiver room can do for the rest of the season. But that doesn’t mean the two-time defending Super Bowl champions shouldn’t address that room in some way, even if it means adding a veteran depth piece to it via trade.
Patrick Mahomes Praises JuJu Smith-Schuster
After a failed stint with the New England Patriots, Smith-Schuster, 27, re-signed with the Chiefs on August 26. Though he started off the 2024 regular season buried on the depth chart, Rice’s season-ending injury thrust him into a primary role on offense in Week 4.
Mahomes gave praise to Smith-Schuster by explaining what makes him so productive in Kansas City’s offense.
“I think he (JuJu Smith-Schuster) just does a good job of knowing where to be at, knowing the full concept of the offense, getting himself open in man-to-man coverage and then just doing whatever it takes to be good,” Mahomes explained on October 16. “I mean, he’ll block, he’ll catch the ball, he’ll run routes [to] get other guys open. [He’s’ just a true team player and then when his number gets called, he goes out there and makes the play and that’s what it takes to be great in this league.”
