The Kansas City Chiefs had a rough 2025 season, ending with just 6 wins and 11 losses. Former NFL quarterback Sage Rosenfels thinks he knows exactly what went wrong with the team’s offense. He believes the Chiefs are making things harder than they need to be for star quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
According to The Sun, Rosenfels pointed out a big problem with how the Chiefs run their plays. The team puts Mahomes in shotgun formation almost all the time, which forces him to make difficult plays on every snap. Rosenfels argues this approach is wearing down their talented quarterback.
“When you think of the Kansas City Chiefs, do you think of them under centre?” Rosenfels said. “No, they are in shotgun all the time. Just because Patrick Mahomes is an incredible talent doesn’t mean you should stretch his capabilities every single play.
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The Chiefs’ offense relies too much on Mahomes instead of helping him succeed
The former quarterback explained that just because Mahomes has incredible talent doesn’t mean the team should push him to his limits on every single play. Sometimes the best strategy is to make things simpler for your quarterback instead of asking him to be a hero constantly.
One major issue Rosenfels noticed is the team’s weak running game. The Chiefs haven’t had a running back rush for over 1,000 yards since 2017. This lack of a strong ground attack puts even more pressure on Mahomes to carry the offense through the air.
According to Rosenfels, the Chiefs ask Mahomes to make too many reads and decisions. He has to throw bubble screens, run RPO plays, or drop back and avoid defenders rushing at him. The team doesn’t run the ball well enough to set up easier play-action passes. The constant physical and mental demands of the toll professional sports takes can wear down even the best athletes.
The problem gets worse because the Chiefs use shotgun formation more than almost any other NFL team. This makes it harder to run effective play-action bootlegs, which could give Mahomes easier throwing opportunities. Rosenfels calls this “the Pat Mahomes effect” – the team has changed their entire style around his abilities.
“In my opinion, they make it too hard on Mahomes. A good head coach and coordinator doesn’t try to maximize every talent of the quarterback just because they can. It’s a tough job day in and day out, asking him to be a hero constantly, and that’s what they ask of Pat Mahomes,” Rosenfels said.
Rosenfels believes a good head coach and coordinator shouldn’t try to use every talent a quarterback has just because they can. The Chiefs need to simplify their offense and go back to basics. This would let other players step up and share the workload. Other NFL coaches have been demanding clarity from the league about various issues affecting their teams this season.
Making things easier on Mahomes would help the entire offense run more smoothly. Instead of asking him to be a hero on every play, the Chiefs should build a system that supports him and makes his job less difficult week after week.
Published: Jan 10, 2026 12:30 pm