2023 was an abnormal year for the Kansas City Chiefs offense and Patrick Mahomes, who struggled to connect with receivers deep down the field.
During a media availability session on Thursday, Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy spoke to reporters about the effort that Kansas City’s coaching staff put in to develop more explosive plays for Mahomes and his speedy new pass-catchers.
When asked about the deep ball specifically, Nagy explained that he and his staff have made a point to innovate and rethink their approach.
“There was quite a bit,” Nagy said about his work on the deep passing game. “It’s a unique question because we always try to go into every year with that mindset. You want to have the initiative to be great at that and practice it from day one. We’ve had some success early on, we’ve got to keep it going, but it’s a mindset.”
Over the past few seasons, defenses have been playing deeper coverage against the Chiefs, causing Mahomes to throw more underneath routes and drive more methodically down the field.
Nagy acknowledged the strategy, but made it clear that he wants Mahomes and the rest of his offense to be cautiously aggressive against deeper coverages.
“I think we’ve seen an evolution – not just against the Chiefs in recent years but also the NFL in general – the deep shots aren’t there as much,” Nagy continued. “[We] just [want to have] that balance of being able to… have that touchdown to check-down mentality, but be smart with when we do take those shots.”
The explosive passing attack was almost non-existent for the Kansas City’s offense last season, as the Chiefs’ receivers struggled to create separation down the field.
With the additions of Marquise Brown and Xavier Worthy, Mahomes should have ample opportunities to challenge opposing defenses.