Super Bowl 55 proved Patrick Mahomes wasn’t the Chiefs MVP after all

While Patrick Mahomes has been great, the Kansas City Chiefs best weapon was their overall protection. 

Patrick Mahomes felt the pressure. When? Ask which time on Sunday evening against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and everyone will have a different answer.

Mahomes’ Super Bowl LV hopes dwindled away quarter by quarter as the Buccaneers continued to run up the score and run down the clock. Each step, the Bucs’ front seven added pressure within seconds, forcing the fourth-year quarterback to run for his life while making the most acrobatic incompletions in the process.

In the end, it wasn’t enough. The Buccaneers claimed their first Super Bowl title since 2003 in their own backyard. Mahomes now heads to the offseason with his first-ever loss in the big game. And while the Chiefs remain a contender in the AFC for years to come, their path back becomes tougher than ever before.

There’s no denying that Mahomes is the Chiefs’ MVP. Without him, who knows if the score would have even been this close when the clock struck zero. However, the real MVPs are the unsung heroes blocking for their quarterback.

Without Mitchell Schwartz and Eric Fisher, Mahomes’ magical season came to a screeching halt.

Kansas City’s offensive line struggles cost them a title

In the two postseasons previous to this one, Mahomes’ offensive line played near elite. The team didn’t allow more than 25 sacks in the regular season. In the postseason, they didn’t allow more than eight in 2018 and 2019.

Nine. That’s the number of pressures allowed from Kansas City’s offensive line before Mahomes heaved up another pass downfield with hopes of keeping the playoffs alive. What else could he do with the line not at his disposal?

Schwartz was ruled out since Week 7 with a back injury. Fisher, the 2013 No.1 pick, tore his Achilles in the fourth quarter of the AFC Championship against the Buffalo Bills. Even breakout guard Kelechi Osemele started strong before injuring both knees in Week 5.

Instead, Mike Remmers was forced to play left tackle. Andrew Wylie was moved out to Remmers’ right tackle spot. Stephen Wisniewski, who was cut by Pittsburgh earlier this season, was forced to start inside at guard.

All that was left was Austin Reiter to lead a podunk bunch into battle against of the league’s best defenses. The result? A plethora of problems that now sends Kansas City back to Arrowhead without a title.

What does the future hold for both players? Will Fisher be cut due to salary concerns? Is Schwartz ready to call it a career? All those are questions that will need to be answered before April’s draft when the team is on the clock.

Brett Veach paid top dollar to keep Mahomes in Kansas City for the next decade. Priority No.1 will be finding offensive linemen that and protect the franchise gunslinger.

Priority No. 2 will be adding more in the draft.