It’s probably not fun being in the same division as the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders have spent the last few weeks deciding on a starting quarterback, and the Los Angeles Chargers may be considering looking for another quarterback while their starter recovers from a foot injury.
In Kansas City, the two-time defending Super Bowl champions are having a lot of fun at the end Passes behind the back and expands the playbook with the speedy rookie wide receiver Xavier Worthy.
Once again, it will be difficult for a team to beat the Chiefs in the AFC West, but it hasn’t been all bad for their division rivals. The Broncos might have something in Rookie Quarterback Bo Nix, who delivered another impressive preseason performance on Sunday. In Denver, at least there is clarity, that cannot Exactly can be said about Las Vegas.
Let’s analyze the Raiders’ and Chargers’ quarterback situations and how the Chiefs used Worthy in the preseason. But this week’s “Five Things We Learned” isn’t just about the AFC West teams. We’ll also try to understand the Atlanta Falcons’ decision not to play their rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. when they had every reason to.
Raiders coach Antonio Pierce had hoped that Gardner Minshew or Aidan O’Connell would make the decision easy for him, but after both quarterbacks struggled again in Week 2 of the preseason, it became clear that neither would take the initiative and take over the starting position.
Rather than wait another week, Pierce chose Minshew and hopes for the best. He’s probably comfortable with that decision, given Minshew’s starting experience and strong resume. The 28-year-old is coming off a season in which he kept the Indianapolis Colts in the playoff race until the final minutes of the regular season and finished the year 7-6 after filling in for Anthony Richardson.
O’Connell helped Pierce get his start as full-time head coach by winning a few games in the final month of the season, which ironically hurt the team’s chances of getting a quarterback in the first round of the draft. They could have had Nix, who was drafted No. 12, one spot ahead of the Raiders. But one win was against a terrible Chargers team that was eliminated. One win against the Chiefs was impressive, but the defense and running attack did most of the work.
It also didn’t help O’Connell that new GM Tom Telesco didn’t draft him and signed Minshew to compete for the job, and there were plenty of reports that the Raiders were looking at ways to draft Jayden Daniels. But O’Connell, a 2023 fourth-round pick, got a fair shot at the job but failed to prove himself — he had an ugly pick-six against the Dallas Cowboys on Saturday night.
With Minshew, you know what you’re getting. He’s a veteran quarterback who isn’t afraid to push the ball out wide, which might keep star receiver Davante Adams happy until the trade deadline. Yes, there will be silly mistakes now and then, but the Raiders could have a dominant defense with Maxx Crosby at the helm, giving them room to overcome turnovers and short fields.
It wasn’t a pretty competition for the quarterback position, but Pierce had enough reasons to choose Minshew over O’Connell before the season finale.
The conspiracy theories circulated after Michael Penix Jr. did not play in the Falcons’ preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens.
Are the Falcons worried that Kirk Cousins hasn’t fully recovered from his Achilles injury and Penix needs to be fit to start the season? Or did Atlanta get scared when the Minnesota Vikings lost JJ McCarthy to a season-ending knee injury?
Falcons coach Raheem Morris, however, had a simple explanation: He saw enough of Penix in his preseason debut and didn’t need the rookie quarterback in the final two tryouts. From that answer, it sounds like Morris’ top priority is keeping his two best playmakers healthy before the regular season, which is understandable given the number of injuries suffered by quarterbacks last year.
Penix could have used the preseason experience, though. He may not play the entire season if all goes well for Cousins in his first season in Atlanta. And since Cousins signed a lucrative four-year, $180 million deal to leave the Vikings and join the Falcons, it could be several seasons before Penix becomes a full-time starter.
On the other hand, Penix is just one Cousins injury away from being a starter, giving the Falcons more reasons to let him play in August. Even Caleb Williams, the top pick in the 2024 draft, had its ups and downs during the Chicago Bears’ preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Game experience is crucial to building consistency on the field, but the Falcons at least picked a good week to offer more quarterback drama. They appear to be favorites to win the NFC South after signing safety Justin Simmons and trading for edge rusher Matthew Judon.
The spotlight in Kansas City would have been on Worthy, a rookie wideout who was set to play a major role in a championship offense if Patrick Mahomes had not made a amazing pass behind the back to Travis Kelce.
Worthy was expected to be a key part of the Chiefs’ offense this season, but it’s clear now that he can handle the heavy load considering how well he played against the Detroit Lions (three catches, 62 receiving yards and a touchdown). The first explosive play of the game came when Mahomes found Worthy downfield on third-and-10 for a 39-yard pass. Later in the first quarter, Worthy connected with backup Carson Wentz for a 22-yard touchdown.
It’s only the preseason, but Worthy has shown reliable hands and a knack for getting free, which has dispelled some doubts about his slender 175-pound frame. Chiefs coach Andy Reid even showed creativity with his new weapon in the preseason, moving Worthy all over the field (Worth had an 11-yard run against the Lions).
Last season, the Chiefs spent most of the regular season searching for reliable pass receivers to back up Mahomes and Kelce. Finally, Rashee Rice found his rhythm in his rookie season and helped the Chiefs to another Super Bowl victory.
With Worthy already contributing, the Chiefs should have no trouble finding playmakers and could even have a better offense than last year’s team, improving their chances of becoming the first team in NFL history to win three consecutive Super Bowls.
Daniel Jones made sure his new, high-profile rookie wide receiver was integrated into the team after Malik Nabers made a quiet preseason debut last week.
Nabers, the No. 6 pick in April’s draft, flashed his potential against the Houston Texans thanks to six receptions from Jones, recording four catches for 54 yards, including a pass for 21 yards.
But Jones’ shaky preseason performance hardly indicated that the Giants’ offense will be much better this season. Once again, Jones struggled to protect the ball, throwing two interceptions, including a pick-six, and nearly getting intercepted on his first pass attempt. (He tried to evade a safety, but only made it worse by throwing the ball to Texans safety Jalen Pitre, who had a short run to the end zone.)
Such fatal errors are the reason why Giants GM Joe Schoen tried to move up in the draft to select a top quarterback candidate. That didn’t work out, and now New York is hoping Nabers can make life easier for Jones. But first, the uneven quarterback needs to help himself by minimizing turnovers, or coach Brian Daboll could make a few more mistakes during the regular season.
The Chargers desperately need a healthy Justin Herbert to start the season, otherwise it could be a long year for new coach Jim Harbaugh.
Backup Easton Stick once again failed to inspire confidence in his offense after a rough performance against the Los Angeles Rams. He played a little better than his ugly debut last season, but things have only gotten better for him.
In two busy preseason games, Stick had three turnovers and failed to score a touchdown. He nearly put the Chargers in the end zone on an impressive 13-play drive, but dropped the ball at the Rams’ one-yard line.
It didn’t make much sense that the Chargers decided to re-sign Stick as Herbert’s backup after he performed so poorly in the four starts he lost through the end of the 2023 season. Now he might be needed again if Herbert isn’t ready to play due to the foot injury he sustained in training camp. But even if Herbert is released, the Chargers should seriously consider looking for a new QB2.
