Having enough weapons for quarterback Patrick Mahomes to throw the ball to has been a major challenge for the Kansas City Chiefs this season. While they still have tight end Travis Kelce and a bright young receiver in Rashee Rice, the inconsistencies from the other receivers have led to the Chiefs leading the league in dropped passes.
Heading into Week 16, the Chiefs are running thin on pass catchers with season-ending injuries to Skyy Moore and Mecole Hardman have landed them on injured reserve, and continuous mistakes from Kadarius Toney and Marquez Valdes-Scantling have proven them unreliable.
As the Chiefs go down the depth chart, the next man up that has emerged as a target Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid can rely on to help move the chains on offense is veteran Richie James.
“I think he’s [Richie James] done a great job with the opportunities that he has had,” Mahomes began. “You’ve seen he’s able to catch the ball, get vertical, break tackles, be in the right spot at the right time.”
Mahomes has spent all year looking for the receivers he can trust to make plays when the opportunity shows itself. Aside from Kelce and Rice, James has stepped up in the limited amount of snaps he’s been given but only has four catches on the year. Mahomes elaborated on why he feels he can trust James over the team’s other receivers.
“I know [Head] Coach [Andy Reid] is talking about how we need to get [James] more involved,” Mahomes said. “You see we’re trying to add him in as much as we can. I think the coaches are going to continue to do that because he offers a different skill set. He’s a veteran guy that knows where he needs to be at the right time.”
James played just two snaps last week against the New England Patriots, reeling in one pass for 17 yards. If he can continue to be in a position to make chunk plays like that consistently, then the 28-year-old wideout could be a weapon the Chiefs utilize to get their swagger back on offense.
