About 96 million people all recognized that the Chiefs either had to quickly fix a major issue or risk wasting some of Patrick Mahomes’ best years.
The entire audience of Super Bowl 2021 witnessed Mahomes running for his life as an injury-depleted offensive line caved under siege from the Buccaneers two years ago. So, it makes the seemingly overnight rebuild that took place since then all the more impressive when considering GM Brett Veach could not mask his desperation for the sake of leverage.
“Brett made that one of his projects after that Super Bowl and did a nice job of bringing in new guys,” head coach Andy Reid said. “They’ve fit in well and done well.”
With injured starting tackles Mitchell Schwartz and Eric Fisher unavailable against a defensive line that featured Ndamukong Suh, Jason Pierre-Paul and Shaq Barrett, the Chiefs turned to fill-ins Mike Remmers and Andrew Wylie. Stefen Wisniewski, Nick Allegretti and Austin Reiter made up the interior three on a line that allowed three sacks, nine quarterback hurries and forced Mahomes to scramble for a mind-boggling 497 yards behind the line of scrimmage in a 31-9 loss.
“Everyone likes to point at that offensive line because of how beat up it was,” tight end Travis Kelce said, “but there were a lot of things we didn’t win that game because of.”
Even if the Chiefs still are sensitive to the blame, actions speak louder than words. Instead of just chalking up the disaster to injury, the Chiefs moved on from four of those linemen who are no longer in the league (including cutting Pro Bowl stalwarts Schwartz and Fisher) while Allegretti and Remmers (now with the Jets) have made just three starts since then in returning to backup roles. Wylie, who shifted to right tackle, is the only holdover starter as the Chiefs prepare for the vaunted Eagles’ pass rush in Super Bowl 2023.
“Ultimately, I was brought here to win a Super Bowl,” said left tackle Orlando Brown Jr., arguably the prize addition. “You don’t get too many opportunities like this.”
In the first three months after the Super Bowl loss, Veach spent big on Patriots free-agent left guard Joe Thuney (five years, $80 million), traded a late first-round pick for Brown while only having to drop 27 spots in the draft as part of a bigger package and stole center Creed Humphrey and right guard Trey Smith in the second and sixth rounds of the draft, respectively. Mahomes wasn’t going to be on the Colts’ Unprotected Andrew Luck Plan.
“All of them are high IQ guys that understand football to another level,” Kelce said.
The quick problem-solving included a willingness to inherit some risk, like Brown wanting to switch from right tackle to left tackle and seeking a massive contract extension that still hasn’t come. He played on the final year of his inferior rookie deal in 2021, on the franchise tag in 2022 and is about to test free agency unless tagged again. Smith, a consensus top-100 prospect, slipped because teams were concerned about a history of blood clots that caused him to miss games in college.
“It’s been pretty easy for us [to mesh] just because everybody wants to be the best they can and everybody wants to play together,” Humphrey said. “Having this coaching staff put faith in me was really cool to see.”
Three of the four additions — Brown, Humphrey and Thuney — were named Pro Bowlers in 2022. But the remade line’s biggest test to date again will be with extra eyeballs watching because the Eagles have 78 sacks in the regular season plus playoffs, which is nearing an NFL record (82).
“I think I’ll see a variety of rushers, everyone they have. My hands will be full,” Brown said. “The numbers and production speak for itself. They do a really good job creating one-on-ones.”
With Mahomes nursing an ankle injury and less willing to scramble than normal in the AFC Championship game, protecting him in the pocket is one of the Super Bowl’s biggest X factors.
“It’s a unique challenge because of the depth and the amount of playmakers the Eagles have,” Humphrey said. “They are able to rotate guys in and still be effective, but you play the game because you want those challenges.”
The Chiefs were ranked the No. 4 offensive line in the NFL by Pro Football Focus, which declared Humphrey as the “new gold standard” for run-blocking centers.
“Those front-five don’t get enough credit, but everyone in the locker room gives them all the credit they deserve,” said running back Jerick McKinnon, another 2021 addition. “Without them, nothing goes.”