There are some things we thought we’d never see in the NFL, and one of them is Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the bottom half of the league in any quarterback rankings. Pro Football Focus just released its final version last week with Nick Akridge doing the honors, and Mahomes somehow fell to 20th.
These rankings are based primarily on QB passing grade, although PFF uses a variety of other metrics to back them up. Mahomes ended up with a passer rating of 70.7, with Matthew Stafford of the Los Angeles Rams leading the ranking at 93.3.
Was Mahomes really that bad? Yes and no. He had some stretches in the first half-dozen games when the Chiefs offense looked like a juggernaut, but when the cracks in the roster began to surface, he was unable to work his usual magic.
The problems are familiar by now. Key injuries in the offensive line forced Mahomes to run for his life in too many games, especially when rookie offensive tackle Josh Simmons added to the problem by taking a leave of absence for personal reasons.
The receiving group was a problem as well. Tight end Travis Kelce had some shaky moments early on, and it was his collision with receiver Xavier Worthy that injured Worthy, who was never able to get back on track after that. Drops plagued the group as well, especially the ones by Rashee Rice that often disrupted the timing of the Kansas City offense in key drives.
As for the rankings themselves, there are some interesting things to note. Quarterbacks Marcus Mariota of the Washington Commanders and Tyler Slough of the New Orleans Saints finished at 18th and 17th, respectively, which makes parts of this ranking hard to take seriously. Other eye-rollers included Kirk Cousins of the Atlanta Falcons at 14th and Mac Jones of the San Francisco 49ers at 13th, and there are others that are barely worth mentioning.
The overall takeaway from this ranking is that it’s probably time to make Mahomes more of a pocket passer. His mobility will be compromised after offseason knee surgery, especially early on, and it’s possible we’ve seen the last of Mahomes as a wild scrambler who could make plays regardless of how bad his protection was.
GM Brett Veach and coach Andy Reid know this, and they’ll undoubtedly draft accordingly. Most mock drafts have Kansas City taking a running back or a tight end with the ninth pick in the draft, and there will be some free agent signings once the Chiefs make some cuts and restructuring. We’ll be seeing a different version of the Chiefs in 2026, and it’s hard to imagine Mahomes not returning to at least the top ten in these rankings if he’s healthy.