NFL
JUST IN: Patrick Mahomes Gives First Impressions of Carson Wentz
There’s a new backup QB in Kansas City as Carson Wentz has taken over the Chad Henne/Blaine Gabbert role behind three-time Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes on the depth chart.
Wentz has an opportunity to fix a glaring weakness in the offense and has the highest upside of any second-string QB the Chiefs have had since Mahomes himself was Alex Smith’s understudy.
After getting to know Wentz a bit and seeing him in action at team minicamp, Mahomes appears to be impressed with his new teammate.
Adam Teicher of ESPN published a piece on Monday discussing Wentz’s unfamiliar spot on the bench, noting that Wentz is willing to help Mahomes any way he can and hopes to learn plenty from him along the way.
Wentz has reportedly looked good in practice, something Mahomes expressed in his comments.
“It’s been great, honestly,” Mahomes said about working with Wentz. “You see why he was on pace to win the MVP. The guy can make every throw. He’s very smart, intelligent, asks a lot of great questions and he’s been in similar offenses before so it’s easy for him to pick it up.”
In 2017, Wentz’s second year with the Eagles, he was the favorite to win NFL MVP before suffering a season-ending injury. He ultimately finished third in voting, passing for 3,296 yards with 33 TDs to just seven interceptions while leading the league in QBR (78.6).
If all goes according to plan, Chiefs fans will never have to see Wentz on the field outside of the preseason or a situation in which Kansas City is resting the starters. In the unfortunate event that Wentz is thrust into game action though, Mahomes seems to have full confidence in his backup’s abilities.