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Patrick Mahomes’ chase for history
When Brady tore his ACL in the 2008 season opener, he was 31 years old and in his ninth NFL season. Mahomes tore his ACL near the end of his ninth season, at 30 years old.
Had Brady never had another elite season or won another Super Bowl after that, he would have been remembered as an all-time great and would certainly have been a Hall
of Famer, but probably not the greatest quarterback ever. Brady ended up playing 23 seasons and was still good into his mid-40s. It’s impossible to expect Mahomes or anyone else to replicate that. But Mahomes has to stack some good seasons together to stay in the race.
Mahomes had arguably the greatest start to any career in NFL history. Through his first six seasons as a starter, he had two MVPs, three Super Bowl rings and three Super Bowl MVPs. It’s hard to be better than that. But it has slowed down, from nearly perfect to simply great levels.
As we know now, Brady’s career was just getting started after his ninth season, when he suffered a season-ending knee injury. The Chiefs are clearly banking on Mahomes doing the same.
NFL divisions ranked by QB talent for the 2026 season | NFL.com
2) AFC West
I’ll admit my evaluation of Bo Nix might have been a little too tempered in 2025, especially when considering how effective Denver’s offense proved to be late in the season. Two years into his pro career, Nix has significantly exceeded expectations and has a point to prove entering 2026 after an ankle injury robbed him of a chance to compete for the AFC title. I’m eager to see how it plays out, especially with Jaylen Waddle joining the receiving corps.
Patrick Mahomes heads toward the 2026 campaign in an unfamiliar place. His Chiefs missed the playoffs for the first time in his career and he’s working his way back from the season-ending knee injury he suffered in December. He too has a point to prove, and it’s an even greater one than what Nix is chasing. Mahomes has to show the world he’s still Patrick Mahomes — and that these are still the big, bad Kansas City Chiefs. We’ll see how that transpires, starting with the question of whether Mahomes will be ready to go in Week 1.
Justin Herbert’s breakdown is simple: Please protect him, Chargers. He played heroically in 2025 despite being under constant assault, proving his toughness behind an injury-riddled O-line. It wasn’t his best season, but it might have been his most impressive. It’s time for the Chargers to build on that, instead of spinning their wheels because of trench deficiencies.
The Raiders are another fascinating team entering 2026 because of how they intend to handle the quarterback situation. New coach Klint Kubiak said he wanted a veteran to run the show from Day 1 in the right scenario, then had his wish granted days later when the Raiders signed Kirk Cousins, the appointed steward of this unit. Before long, though, this will be No. 1 overall pick Fernando Mendoza’s offense, hopefully as the result of a process that isn’t rushed.
The Chiefs’ decision to ink Mahomes to a 10-year contract back in 2020 continues to pay dividends for Kansas City. With the amount of years and the amount of money that the Chiefs had to play with to properly compensate Mahomes? It’s been seamless to annually transition money around within the contract to keep him near the top of the food chain.
But now? With the two new years of this current deal, Mahomes lands a striking $64 million per year in new money. It measures to $128 million in new money on two new year’s total. And Mahomes is now under contract in Kansas City through 2033. Look beyond Mahomes and the Chiefs, though. This also offers a major boost to the benchmarks that teams and players will negotiate with on future quarterback contracts.
Every quarterback extension that’s coming in the years ahead will benefit from the glass ceiling of the Prescott annual average being broken. That includes names like Lamar Jackson and Drake Maye, to start. It will raise the middle class of quarterback contracts from the mid-30 million range. We could now see it pushed into the $40+ million range. The upper middle class now consists of names like Purdy, Goff, and more — all north of $50 million in annual average.
Chiefs may be holding the solution to Rams nightmare scenario | Arrowhead Addict
While it’s uncertain what the Chiefs might get in return, there’s no doubt that Morris could provide a team like Rams with some security up front. He has 16 starts in his first three NFL seasons after Kansas City drafted him in the third round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Depending on their internal draft grades on Morris, the Rams could find another reason to call Veach and work out a deal.
The Rams are dealing with the unsettling news of Alaric Jackson’s recent arrest on suspicion of domestic violence. The Rams are a long way from any clarity regarding Jackson’s potential availability for a new season, but some preventative roster maintenance in the form of tackle help might be worth the investment for Snead.
Morris would come with a $1.7 million cap hit for the Rams, or any interested team, which is a reasonable price for someone capable of holding down a swing tackle role in ’26. Still only 25, Morris is young and might benefit from a change of scenery, and the motivation of a contract year wouldn’t hurt. And with former teammates like McDuffie and Jaylen Watson on the Rams roster, Morris might have some insiders encouraging such a trade.
Chiefs 2025 Draft Pick Emerging as Dependable Playmaker During Minicamp | Heavy
With Rashee Rice missing camp due to serving jail time, Royals appears to be taking advantage of increased opportunities. He instantly drew comparisons to Rice when the Chiefs drafted him last year given their similar body types and yards after the catch abilities.
Royals was a fourth-round draft pick for the Chiefs in 2025. He impressed during training camp and preseason, even getting some run with the first-team offense. Unfortunately, Royals sustained knee tendinitis during the second preseason game, which majorly halted the momentum he was building.
When he recovered and returned, he was buried on the depth chart after missing so much time, as well as Rice having returned from his six-game suspension. By the time Royals started getting some playing time, Chris Oladokun was at the helm at quarterback, and the Chiefs’ season was dead. Royals is now fully healthy, and has a year of experience in coach Andy Reid’s offensive playbook.
Around the NFL
Eagles sign AJ Epenesa months after Browns balked on deal | ESPN
The Browns had agreed to a one-year deal with Epenesa worth up to $5 million on March 18, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter. But Cleveland opted against finalizing the contract after the veteran had his physical, a source told ESPN’s Daniel Oyefusi on March 29.
Epenesa, 27, has spent all six of his NFL seasons with the Buffalo Bills. Originally a second-round pick by Buffalo in the 2020 NFL draft, Epenesa has been a reliable member of the team’s defensive line rotation over the years and a strong backup. He has played in 91 games with 19 starts.
Epenesa has recorded 24 sacks in his career, but he tallied only 2.5 sacks over 16 games in 2025 after recording 19 across the previous three years.
Mike Vrabel did not outright dismiss the possibility of re-signing free agent Stefon Diggs when asked if it’s under consideration during his Wednesday press conference. But he did not seem particularly interested in the possibility either.
“I think we [are] probably at the number that we would need right now,” Vrabel said. “I wouldn’t say anything is off the table. We would want to add anybody that could help us. I’m not going to give a percentage on it, but I think we’re happy with where we’re at right now with the numbers and the people in the receivers’ room.
“I appreciate Stefon as a person and as a player and what he did for us last year — I’ll value that. Helped us win football games. Helped us get to where we got. But right now, I don’t think that’s something that I think we’re exploring. But I would never say no.”
Diggs is arguably the best receiver available in the current market. Despite coming off a torn ACL, he caught 85 passes for 1,013 yards with four touchdowns in 17 games last season. He also had 14 receptions for 110 yards with one TD in four postseason games.
Henry Ruggs could be paroled from prison soon. Here’s what you need to know | The Athletic
Could Ruggs return to the NFL?
Separately from the parole question, Ruggs, 27, has also expressed interest in returning to football. He told a Hope For Prisoners group gathering in Las Vegas last year that he wanted to return to the NFL when released from prison. Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs, a former teammate at Alabama and with the Raiders, said last year that Ruggs was training in prison and that he had talked to other NFL teams on Ruggs’ behalf, adding “a couple teams” seemed “willing to give him a chance.”
A first-round pick by the Raiders in 2020, Ruggs had 24 catches for 469 yards and two touchdowns in seven games in 2021 before the Raiders released him hours after he was charged in the death of Tintor.
Ruggs is a free agent and could sign with any team.
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Chiefs’ Harrison Butker looking to bounce back from slow start in 2025
To dig deeper into the struggles Butker went through in 2025, after years of being as reliable and clutch as any kicker in the NFL, he talked about the overkill of focusing on making long kicks.
“Starting the season last year with the misses, and they were long misses, I feel like I was just so focused on hitting the big ball,” Butker said. “Especially when it’s like a 56-yarder, I’m trying to crush it when there’s no need to. If you just hit it smooth, it’ll still go over the crossbar.
“So for the rest of the season, I just didn’t really care about hitting a big ball, and I really haven’t focused on that during OTAs,” Butker pointed out. “[It] just tells you when you’re smooth, and you have good foot-to-ball contact, and you’re feeling strong, the ball’s going to go. You don’t need to overpower it. Kicking is such a mental skill that if you’re going out there and you don’t have the right mindset, that can really affect you a ton.”
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