The Chiefs’ problems up front keep piling up, but Patrick Mahomes is still making sure Kenneth Walker III gets his flowers.
Kansas City’s offensive line has been dealing with one bad update after another, yet Mahomes spent part of his Thursday press conference talking up the running back again, according to Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. Walker also draws a tough assignment Monday night against the Denver Broncos defense.
“You’ve got to use that guy,” Mahomes said of Walker in his Thursday press conference in a report from Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk. “I mean, he’s a talented football player.
He runs tough. He has speed.
He can break a touchdown at any moment. He can catch the ball.
He does kind of it all.”
That praise comes with a little reality check attached. Walker has not exactly built a reputation as a reliable receiver over the course of his career, even if Kansas City is planning to work him into the screen game.
And while he has shown he can rip off big gains and chunk plays for the Seattle Seahawks, he is not the kind of runner who simply outruns everybody once he breaks free. He’s quick enough to make defenders miss in space, but he’s not a true burner.
Still, the Chiefs know they need him. Monday night could get tricky fast, especially if the Broncos crowd the box and force Mahomes to attack downfield with Xavier Worthy and Rashee Rice.
“When you have those guys on your team, you find ways to get them the football,” Mahomes added. “If that’s either just handing the ball off to them or throwing it to them, you’ve got to and so we got him for a reason. He came in with the right mindset and mentality, and he’s really attacked this offseason.
“And so, I think he’s as excited as anybody to get out there in Arrowhead and have Chiefs Kingdom behind him, and so him as well as Emmett [Johnson] and Brashard [Smith], I mean, we’ve got a good running back room, and we’ll utilize those guys within this offense.”
For Kansas City, the plan looks pretty clear: lean on the run, try to slow the game down, and make Denver settle for field goals. It’s a workable blueprint. The question is whether that shaky offensive line can hold up long enough to make it happen.
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