The Kansas City Chiefs are easily the most innovative offensive team in the league as it pertains to offensive football. They’re led by head coach Andy Reid, who’s arguably the most creative playcaller over the last 20 years in the NFL.
Offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy also calls plays and orchestrates the team’s dynamic run game. We can’t forget the maestro that makes it all go, quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who has been the starter since 2018. Mahomes has won a Super Bowl, played in two, and has also taken home a league MVP and Super Bowl MVP in that time frame.
Since “Mr. Ketchup On Errthang” has been under center the Chiefs have hosted all four AFC championship games, winning two and losing two in overtime.
They’ve also gone an astounding 23-3 in the AFC West, including Monday Night’s 30-29 comeback win over the Las Vegas Raiders. In a year where many NFL offenses are putrid and predictable, the Chiefs provide the innovation and creativity the fans crave weekly.
That’s all a byproduct of a dynamic offensive scheme put in place by Reid and Bieniemy that accentuates the skill set of Mahomes. The fusion of these three elements has offset a mediocre Chiefs defense and made K.C. an NFL leader in offensive innovation and a perennial Super Bowl contender.
Prior to a 2020 matchup with Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, legendary defensive guru Bill Belichick raved about the Chiefs’ offense.
“I think Andy continually comes up with little wrinkles here and there. You expect that a couple plays a game, but that’s not the core of what they do. Those gadget plays and those formations that are a little out of the ordinary, that will pop up from time to time. But they really win with good fundamentals, good execution and the core of the things they do.
“They obviously put things in there to mix it up and give the defense a little bit of a different look. So, those are definitely coming in every game — a different one, ones that we haven’t practiced — but we’ll have to follow our rules and handle those situations when they come up.”
Got that DAWG in 'em 😤 pic.twitter.com/ma8zgEA283
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) October 11, 2022
Belichick was showing the utmost respect to Reid and his creative schemes. And in 2022 that is no different.
Chiefs’ Offense Is Just As Good Without Tyreek Hill: It’s Actually More Efficient
When the team traded star wideout Tyreek Hill in March many believed the offense would suffer. But that hasn’t been the case, as the team sits at 4-1 while averaging 32 points per game. Mahomes is having an MVP start to his season with nearly 1,400 yards passing, 15 touchdowns and just two interceptions. But what stands out is the efficiency that he’s playing with while leading the offense, and that relates directly back to Reid and Bieniemy. With Hill gone, Mahomes no longer feels the pressure to get him the ball.
Now he can spread it around to new pieces like JuJu Smith-Schuster, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Skyy Moore, and holdover Mecole Hardman. That doesn’t even include Travis Kelce, who’s the best tight end in the league and had an NFL-record four touchdown grabs on Monday. The play calls are geared more to the short-to-intermediate passing game, but they still have top end speed with Valdes-Scantling and Hardman, so defenses still have to respect that aspect of their offense.
After some early season struggles in 2021 when teams began implementing a cover-two or two-deep safety look to take away big plays, Mahomes adjusted. Utilizing the seams and sidelines has become a real staple in Reid and Bieniemy’s new, versatile attack.
DON'T MESS WITH THE BEST. pic.twitter.com/BMWIiZqaT4
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) October 11, 2022
Chiefs v.s Bills Shaping Up To Be AFC Championship Preview
Next week’s early season matchup with the rising Buffalo Bills is going to tell us a lot more about this offense. They’ll be facing a highly effective defense led by future Hall of Famer Von Miller. The last time these two got together it was insane; a 42-36 win by the Chiefs in overtime of the AFC Divisional playoffs.
The two MVP front-runners in Mahomes and Bills quarterback Josh Allen will battle again for top dog supremacy in the league. That title goes to Mahomes until Allen can beat him when it matters. And as long as Reid and Bieniemy are dialing up those head-spinning plays, you have to trust Mahomes to execute to the fullest.
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