3 Chiefs who need to better help Patrick Mahomes for a Super Bowl repeat

1. WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling

Back to the offense and players directly working with Patrick Mahomes, Marques Valdes-Scantling has previous experience working with an elite quarterback. As a member of the Green Bay Packers, "MVS" never quite put it together as a clear-cut starter, but he did put his speed to use, leading the league with 20.9 yards per reception in 2020.

Valdes-Scantling has talent. Otherwise, the Kansas City Chiefs wouldn't have bothered signing him in 2022 on a contract worth $10 million per year. He averaged about 40 yards per game in his first season in Kansas City, putting together a couple of highlight-reel receptions. However, he wasn't exactly a star receiver for Mahomes, showing the same boom-or-bust nature that prevented him from becoming a truly key target for Rodgers in Green Bay.

Last season, Valdes-Scantling was useful even if he wasn't highly impressive. This season, he's been downright subpar. In six games, Valdes-Scantling has caught just seven passes. Those receptions do go a long way, more than 16 yards on average, and he can help clear the field as a deep threat. But when you break down the numbers, Valdes-Scantling isn't even one of the top five targets on the Chiefs.

Deep threat or not, an average of about one catch per game is nowhere near what an NFL team expects from a 29-year-old receiver making $10 million. Valdes-Scantling has to do more. Mahomes and the other receivers need him to do a better job of getting open more consistently.

He needs to find signature moves at the top of his stem to get that little bit of separation necessary, he needs to be more aggressive at the catch point in the red zone, and he needs to work with Mahomes on some option routes so that the two of them can take advantage of soft spots in the coverage downfield as the play develops.

There is no reason to give up on a player with Valdes-Scantling's physical tools and experience, but the Chiefs have every reason to demand more from him. Surely, they also believe he is capable of more, since they chose to invest in him last year.