Let’s Argue: “The quarterback sneak wasn’t a bad call”

Welcome to this week’s edition of Let’s Argue!

Inspired by a video series created by music reviewer Anthony Fantano, Robert Rimpson’s weekly series takes a look at hot takes, unpopular opinions, wacky predictions and more from Kansas City Chiefs fans.

“The quarterback sneak wasn’t a bad call”

Initially, the idea of running a quarterback sneak with your franchise quarterback while he’s suffering from a lower-body injury doesn’t seem all that appealing. For a moment — when Patrick Mahomes had to leave the game on Thursday night — it even looked like Andy Reid’s decision to run the play cost the Chiefs a Super Bowl-contending season.

But all things considered, I agree with this take and Reid’s decision. In fact, I hope the Chiefs continue to run quarterback sneaks in those kinds of situations. It was fourth-and-1 in a division game where the Chiefs were only up by one score. The Chiefs needed a win in order to get some sort of momentum on their way to hosting the Green Bay Packers at Arrowhead. Getting a touchdown on that drive would have helped them do that.

According to Sports Info Solutions, since 2015, the quarterback sneak has an 88% conversion rate on third or fourth-and-short situations. That’s the highest conversion rate of any running play other than a designed quarterback run, which is also 88%. Imagine if the Chiefs had that kind of play available to them — but couldn’t use it.

Don’t forget that Mahomes’ injury was to his knee — not his ankle. The ankle injury didn’t have an effect on whether he would have been hurt on the play.

“Patrick Mahomes’ injury is a blessing in disguise”

This take is from Arrowhead Pride’s very own editor-in-chief Pete Sweeney!

I can’t help but agree with Pete’s take — because otherwise, I don’t think Mahomes would have gotten any rest for his ankle. It was clear the sore ankle was affecting his ability to avoid pressure, which is critical to making up for the Chiefs’ injured and underwhelming offensive line.

Who knows when Eric Fisher and Andrew Wylie will be back? Even when they return, are we 100% sure their presence will fix all the problems on the line? The only way to permanently fix the problem is to trade for an All-Pro offensive lineman — or let Mahomes’ ankle heal.

By now, it’s pretty clear to most people that Mahomes’ ultra-competitive nature won’t allow him to sit if he knows he can play. Maybe this is the only way he would ever sit down and allow his ankle to heal.

“Shut down Sammy Watkins until New England”

This next take comes from 610 Sports radio host Carrington Harrison — and it is quite hot.

In theory, this idea makes a ton of sense. Watkins isn’t as important to the team’s success as Mahomes, but when he’s healthy, he can be a critical contributor. He also has a significant injury history; the more often he plays, the more likely he is to get hurt and miss time.

Saving your glass cannon — if you will — for big games almost makes perfect sense. But consider the reasons that make it a bad idea:

What if Watkins is healthy before the New England game? The Chiefs would be paying a lot of money to have a healthy receiver sitting on the sidelines for however long that is.

Who knows how other players on the team would react to a healthy teammate sitting on the sidelines because he might get hurt — when they are putting their bodies on the line every play?

Finally, sitting a healthy Watkins doesn’t take into account the possibility — albeit small — that he stays healthy for the rest of the year.

Ultimately, I think that if the Chiefs are seriously considering doing this, it would be much less of a headache if they just traded Watkins for a player (or a draft pick) they actually think they can use.

“I don’t want to go to the game on Sunday”

Why not? It’s going to be Aaron Rodgers in a shootout against Patri... oh... Matt Moore.

Okay, I see your point. On the bright side, I’m sure whichever Packers fans get your tickets will thoroughly enjoy themselves.

“Frank Clark is fine and Chiefs fans need to relax”

While I would love to agree with Matt Miller of the Stick to Football podcast, I understand why Chiefs fans are frustrated. They were promised a quarterback-sacking machine that would make up for the losses of Justin Houston and Dee Ford — and so far, that isn’t what Clark has been.

He has, however, been a guy who can make plays — as evidenced by his two sacks against Denver, his forced fumble against the Texans, his interception against the Jaguars and so on.

Clark does need to be better before I’ll say he has been worth his large contract. But given the flashes of greatness he’s shown this season, I believe that giving up on him now would be a huge mistake.

“The Chiefs should cut Laurent Duvernay-Tardif and Damien Williams”

Arrowhead Pride’s lead draft and film analyst Kent Swanson with an absolute heater!

With the trend these players have been on, it might not be a bad idea for the Chiefs to at least see if there’s an offseason trade market for them. The offensive line has obviously been bad — and these days it seems like LeSean McCoy has replaced Williams as the Chiefs’ best running back.

I think Kansas City should be a tad more cautious with potentially getting rid of Duvernay-Tardif, because getting rid of him doesn’t guarantee that the offensive line will improve.

Ultimately, I think everyone should wait until the season plays out before deciding what the Chiefs should do with a player. Injuries and playoff performances can always change the equation.