Wide receiver issues were well-documented for the Kansas City Chiefs this past season. Yes, they wound up winning the Super Bowl thanks to the heroics, but they also led the league in dropped passes and did not have a single 1,000-yard receiver.
Looking ahead to the 2024 season, the Chiefs entered the offseason with Rashee Rice and a whole bunch of question marks in their wide receiver room. Adding at least one legitimate weapon seemed like a must if Kansas City wanted to give themselves the best chance to three-peat and they did just that, signing Marquise “Hollywood” Brown to a one-year deal.
Mahomes expressed his satisfaction with the move on X when it first went down, and he continued to express how excited he was to play with Brown on ESPN’s Sports Center on Saturday. Mahomes being this excited to play with a dynamic receiver should terrify the rest of the NFL.
“He just brings a ton of dynamic playmaking ability and I think just being able to add a guy like that who’s ready to come in and work and be hungry. I’ve already talked to him. Going to be a lot of throwing sessions in our future and we’re trying to keep this thing rolling. We’re going to win the soccer championship here with the women’s soccer team [the NWSL’s Kansas City Current] and then we’re going to try to go back to that Super Bowl again.”
Mahomes is very excited to play with an extremely fast and talented receiver in Brown who has shown glimpses of star potential in his NFL career. Back in the 2021 season, his last one in Baltimore, Brown recorded 1,008 yards in the air and scored six touchdowns.
His production has tailed off significantly since then, but perhaps playing the last two seasons for abysmal Cardinals teams with quarterbacks like Josh Dobbs and Colt McCoy receiving ample opportunities to play with Kyler Murray’s unreliable availability has played a role. Going from a rough situation in Arizona to playing for arguably the most talented quarterback we’ve ever seen might unlock Hollywood in a big way. Mahomes seems to be expecting that.
Hollywood has never played for an elite pass-first quarterback. Even Lamar Jackson in Baltimore wasn’t as good of a passer and didn’t look to pass as much when Hollywood was there as he is right now.
If Mahomes is able to build chemistry with Hollywood, the league really should watch out. The Chiefs have always been hard to stop with Mahomes under center. Adding an extremely talented weapon in Hollywood makes them just that much more dangerous.