Arrowheadlines: Patrick Mahomes’ absence will prove his value

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The Ringer Staff’s 2019 NFL Midseason Playoff and Awards Predictions | The Ringer

MVP

The Ringer Staff’s 2019 NFL Midseason Playoff and Awards Predictions | The Ringer

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs

Sherman: He’s not going to miss that much playing time, and a bad Matt Moore game will go a long way toward proving his value. (This award is based off of value, right?)

2019 Midseason Awards: NFL on CBS analysts split on MVP, with Packers’ Aaron Rodgers a slight favorite | CBS Sports

James Lofton: Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes

”Even injured, no one moves the NFL needle the way he does. Not Tom Brady or Rodgers, let youth be served!”

Matt Moore appreciating the role of Chiefs backup QB | NFL.com

“You go out, you prepare, you get ready to play a game, you value the reps you get and use those to your advantage,” Moore told reporters on Wednesday. “You move forward with that mindset. Again, this is nothing new. I’ve been in this situation before. I’m used to it. You just go practice and get yourself better for Sunday.

QB Index, Week 9: Russell Wilson, Aaron Rodgers share throne | NFL.com

23 Matt Moore

With Patrick Mahomes sidelined by the kneecap injury -- though not for long, due to his naturally loose ligaments ( seriously) -- Moore was thrust onto the Sunday Night Football stage for his first start since Week 12 of the 2017 season. To the pleasant surprise of NBC, though, the former retiree stuck right with the guy sharing top billing in this file with Russell Wilson: Aaron Rodgers’ Sunday night: 23-33 (69.7%), 305 yards, 3 TD, 0 INT, 129.0 passer rating. Matt Moore’s Sunday night: 24-36 (66.7%), 267 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 107.1 passer rating.

NFL rookie rankings: Nick Bosa leads top 25 at midseason mark | NFL.com

18 Mecole Hardman

The speedy wideout fits beautifully in the Chiefs’ system and he’s helped them overcome some early-season injuries at the position.

Around the league

Nagy envisions Bears bouncing back, like Chiefs in 2015 | Yahoo Sports

The Bears never lost more than two in a row last season. Back-to-back losses dropped them to 3-3, and then they went on a 9-1 run that catapulted them to the playoffs for the first time since 2010.

Nagy insists this year’s team is capable of a breakthrough - just like last season and just like Kansas City in 2015.

’’What I’m seeing is I have players coming up to me that are telling me, ‘We’ve got this, Coach.’ That’s all I really need, which is cool,’’ Nagy said.

The NFL players and coaches who have the most to gain and lose in 2019 | ESPN

Marcus Peters, CB, Baltimore Ravens

If he plays at a high level, he’ll get paid. For all his missteps, he is too talented and has too much of a nose for the football to stay on the market for long. (He has 25 interceptions in five seasons.) Too many teams need help at cornerback in a league in which defenses are in their nickel packages more than half of the time. If we get the guy who gave up touchdowns with mental mistakes in Los Angeles, though, Peters might end up settling for a one-year deal in the hopes of resetting his market for 2021.

Source: Joe Flacco expected to miss 4-6 weeks, won’t need surgery for neck injury | ESPN

“Everything is still on the table with Joe,” coach Vic Fangio said Thursday. “We can leave him on the 53[-man roster] and wait a while, or we could IR him. We’ll make that decision here in the next couple days. ... By the end of the week I think we’ll have a better understanding, after getting the all of the medical advice, going over it, what plan we’ll take long term.”

NFL Week 9 QB Power Rankings: Gardner Minshew is playing like franchise QB the Jaguars have been desperate for | CBS Sports

Obviously, it’s Minshew himself who deserves the credit for his surprising emergence and ascent. But let’s also take a moment to commend the Jaguars -- yes, the same team that drafted Blake Bortles and stuck with him one season too long, and passed on Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson in order to take Leonard Fournette -- for finding Minshew. Did the Jaguars know Minshew would be this good? Of course not. If they had known, they wouldn’t have wasted all that money on Foles in free agency and they wouldn’t have waited until the 178th pick to draft him.

In case you missed it at Arrowhead Pride

Chiefs defensive trends and tabulation for Week 8

The run defense has improved significantly over the past two weeks — and it’s not just personnel changes that have made the difference.

For all the derision he gets about his pass coverage, Anthony Hitchens has really gotten this depleted front to play disciplined football against the run. The linebackers and defensive linemen have done a good job against the run, allowing a paltry 3.74 yards per carry over the last two weeks.

SB Nation’s Fan Pulse (after Week 8)

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