He doesn't have to "step up". Staying where he was, or backtracking a bit he can get it out to Rice.

He's left some clean pockets this year.
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I've been wondering if mahomes is going through a transition to a true pocket qb. We heard when obj got here that it was an adjustment because mahomes would leave the pocket. Talk of new lineman having to adjust to his extending plays.

Maybe mahomes is still trying to adjust to this and standing in a pocket speeds up his internal clock and so he passes on open guys because it's happening a little too quickly.

Personally I love when mahones leaves the pocket because it stresses defenders. I get excited thinking a big bomb is coming. He's definitely comfortable scrambling around.

Maybe he just needs time to readjust his thinking and get more experience sitting. He's been doing it a lot this season and the line...despite what some are saying here...is giving him plenty of time to stand there. Just wondering about this.
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He was a great pocket QB last year. The offense was rolling, he took hits in the pocket and threw dimes regardless

He’s simply not playing as sharply as he was in 2022
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Yeah, it's really weird.
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The biggest change from last season is the addition of Nagy as OC. Is there a chance he isn't good enough to squeeze adequate production from a bunch of mostly JAG receivers?
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Based on the exact same reasoning EB is also a dumpster fire of an OC.

OC change has nothing to do with our offensive woes because Andy is the OC.

This is all about not replacing JuJu.
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The rookies need to get up to speed pronto and they need PM to trust them.
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I can't accept that a one-legged JJSS made all the difference between last year's offense and this one. He was decent, but he wasn't any better than Rice is right now, and Rice is obviously improving rapidly.
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Rice is better than JuJu. He's better than 2022 JuJu.

If this is 'all' about anything (it isn't) then it's about Mahomes not playing to the same level as last season.

Perhaps we set the bar too high, but THAT'S the major change from last season to this season.
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DOOM
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Let's take a step back to the Cassel/Smith days, shall we?

The "none of it matters until we get a legit championship caliber QB" crowd thought this way for one single reason - EVERYTHING is made better by a better quarterback. Your OL doesn't have to hold blocks as long. Your WRs don't have to be as open. Your play-calling doesn't have to be as pristine. Literally everything on the offense gets better when your QB does.

So now we're looking at a situation where seemingly everything on the offense has gotten worse. And the personnel is the same or in some cases better.

What's the most likely root source of that?

Fellas, this isn't as complicated as we're making it. The OL isn't playing worse than last season. It is, IMO, playing better - but lets assume for the sake of argument that it's break even. And the WRs aren't worse - this has been litigated to death but I just don't see how you can make the argument. Toney wasn't some integral piece of the offense last season - we just thought he WOULD be this season. Moore isn't worse than he was last season - he's the same non-factor. JJSS wasn't some remarkable destroyer of worlds, he was an underneath target who had the shortest depth of target among WRs in the NFL.

There's a really easy and obvious explanation here, folks. It's just not one that anyone's terribly fond of.
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Call me when he has 70/1,000
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He doesn't do a lot of the things that JuJu did.

Most notably down the sidelines and over the intermediate area of the field.

Not to mention back shoulder throwers.

JuJu is vastly underrated around here now.
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He's on pace for about 65/700. And trending in a positive direction.

But lets say he settles in at that figure. He just stays as roughly this same level of player.

Over the course of an entire season that's roughly 1 catch for 15 yards/gm vs. what JJSS did last season.

You think THAT'S the difference between last season and this season? Especially in light of the MASSIVE disparity in raw snaps?

C'mon - you know that's not the case.

The 'downgrade' from Smith-Schuster to Rice is not going to approach causing these kind of flameouts.
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No, it's not. Mahomes is playing worse, too. But the Rice/JuJu dynamic is part of it. AND they haven't hard Hardman for half a season.

Not hard to figure out.
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