Legendary NFL quarterback Drew Brees rarely needed to leave the pocket because his timing, footwork, and faith in his protection kept the offense on schedule. He trusted the plan and let the rhythm do the work, which racked up over 80,000 passing yards. However, Patrick Mahomes plays a different game, but after a hard look at a tape, he wants some of that calm and trust in his offensive line.
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The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off their 2026 season campaign with a 5-0 record. However, during the Week 7 clash against the Seattle Seahawks, Patrick Mahomes & the Chiefs suffered a 3-20 loss, ending their winning streak. Shortly after, Mahomes took a look at the game’s film and shared his honest thoughts about his unit.
“After watching the film, I think I should have more confidence. I moved sometimes when I didn’t necessarily have to, moved myself into pressure. I created some of those pressures,” Mahomes said in a press conference, per Sleeper Chiefs on X. “I have to have confidence those guys are going to hold up.”
Patrick Mahomes was talking about his offensive line, which has seen instability and changes during the 2026 season. While the interior remains anchored by elite talent like center Creed Humphrey and guard Trey Smith, the tackle positions have been volatile due to critical injuries and underperformance.
The Chiefs drafted tackle Josh Simmons in the first round to be a foundational piece of Mahomes’ protection. However, a severe back injury landed him on injured reserve, leaving him sidelined for the foreseeable future.
With Simmons out and fellow tackle Jaylon Moore dealing with an inconsistent season and a concussion, the Chiefs have had to rely on inexperienced blockers.
As a result, Patrick Mahomes has been sacked 7 times through 6 games. While this number seems low on paper, it is skewed by Mahomes’ scrambling ability to bail out of collapsing pockets.
The structural flaws were further exposed during the Week 7 blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Mahomes, in particular, was pressured on 19 of his 36 dropbacks.
During that game, tackle Joshua Ezeudu surrendered 5 pressures, while Kahlil Benson allowed 4. Alarmingly, Seattle generated this relentless push while blitzing just 16.7% of the time, meaning the Chiefs’ tackles were consistently losing standard four-man rushes.
Yet, head coach Andy Reid remains focused on making changes to the offensive unit’s structure.
Rather than relying on Patrick Mahomes to constantly bail out the offense in empty-backfield spread formations, Reid revamped his coaching staff by bringing back offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and hiring position coaches like DeMarco Murray (running backs).
First off, they shifted “pass-only” to a run-first anchor, where they signed reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III. Then, instead of forcing Patrick Mahomes to sit stationary in a traditional pocket, Reid has altered the launch angle geometry of the passing game.
This tactical adjustment also keeps Mahomes upright by shifting him out of harm’s way, while deep crossers from receivers like Xavier Worthy exploit the spaces vacated by pursuing defenders.
However, the Week 7 game failed to produce fruit from the structure change, with Mahomes finishing 19-of-33 (57.6% completion rate) for 165 yards. That said, it will be interesting to see how the Chiefs QB makes changes to his game moving forward.