Stagner Things: five ‘ridiculous’ feelings of Chiefs fans in 2019

1. It’s ridiculous to worry about the Chiefs running back situation.

Head coach Andy Reid always gets production out of running backs, wherever the team finds them. Last year, they overcame the loss of Kareem Hunt with breakout performances from now-starter Damien Williams. They bolstered the depth in the offseason with Carlos Hyde, and by drafting Darwin Thompson who looks like an explosive weapon. Oh, and they still have Darrel Williams and convert-project Tremon Smith. Reid recently told SiriusXM NFL Radio that he intends to use all of his backs in 2019. There isn’t a problem at running back other than having too many guys that can play and that’s nothing to worry about.

2. It’s ridiculous to not worry about the Chiefs cornerback position.

Charvarius Ward and Bashaud Breeland will be fine as long as they stay healthy, but that’s no given. Fuller appears to be struggling in camp, and the lack of depth is being exposed due to the injury to Keith Reaser. There is no way the Chiefs aren’t concerned about this position, which they tried to upgrade in the offseason. Even now that Morris Claiborne is on board, he’s on a very inexpensive contract and will miss the first four games. There is likely still another move coming. Be worried, but be patient.

3. It’s ridiculous to think that Patrick Mahomes is going to be better this year.

He put up 5,000 and 50 last year, nearly led the Chiefs to the Super Bowl, won the MVP, and is now the face of the NFL. It’s insane to expect him to improve. But the most signficant jump for many players happens in years one-to-two and two-to-three, and Mahomes is in one of those transition years, depending on how you count it. Watching the reports and clips coming out of camp, it appears Mahomes has improved his deep-ball accuracy and footwork and is continuing his growth as a leader. As ridiculous as it is, Mahomes will be better.

4. It’s ridiculous to think that the Chiefs defense will be top 15 or better.

They are coming off of a terrible season, in which the defense was the reason the team didn’t go to the Super Bowl. They lost the heart and soul of the squad and the two best EDGE rushers, and they didn’t improve the corners (see No. 2 above). They fired the whole coaching staff and are switching schemes. They will take the field Week 1 with at least six new starters on defense. How can we expect them to be in the top half of the league all of a sudden? Well, Frank Clark and Tyrann Mathieu, for starters. Changing the tone-setters might just change everything. They should be better against the run and even better in the pass rush. The linebackers will be playing faster. The safeties are dramatically better. Oh, and there’s more depth, especially in the front seven. The improvement might actually be ridiculous.

5. It’s ridiculous that we fall for the same things every year.

Undrafted free agents from this year and last year always get us excited about the wide receiver position this time of year. Rarely does that excitement last into the regular season. When the games count, the offense will go through Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, Sammy Watkins, Damien Williams, and occasionally Demarcus Robinson and Mecole Hardman. To expect Marcus Kemp, Gehrig Dieter, Byron Pringle, Cody Thompson, Jamal Custis or Felton Davis to have an opportunity to do anything other than play special teams is crazy. Unless someone gets hurt, which they always do. Worst case scenario, these guys will make the preseason games more fun to watch.

Honorable mention

• We also call for replacing Anthony Sherman, Daniel Sorensen and Dustin Colquitt every year, but they have stood the test of time in Kansas City. There’s no reason to think that they are going anywhere this year either.
• Oh, and yes, it’s also ridiculous that people fall for the Chargers every offseason. They’ll be good, not great, and they’ll find ways to blow whatever potential the media buys into every year. The Chiefs won’t be worried about the Chargers, Browns, or any of the other media darlings from the offseason. The Super Bowl favorites play home games in Kansas City; everything else is just offseason craziness.

From the upside down

It’s ridiculous to think the Chiefs can pay Jones a similar contract to Frank Clark, while still being able to pay Hill and Mahomes without cutting anyone.

In an upcoming piece, we’ll talk more about the salary cap and the CBA, but even ridiculous contracts might be bargains if done prior to the new CBA, so teams could be compelled to outspend what we think is ridiculous now because it won’t seem so crazy in a couple of years.