Wide receiver has been a focal point for the Kansas City Chiefs since Tyreek Hill was traded two years ago. Ironic since Kansas City has won two Super Bowls in the two seasons without Hill.
The Chiefs upgraded at wide receiver this offseason with Marquise "Hollywood" Brown in free agency, who may become the No. 1 wideout with Rashee Rice and his offseason issues. Patrick Mahomes has worked with Brown plenty this offseason, noticing these major aspects he'll bring to the Chiefs offense.
"I think you obviously see the speed, you see the speed instantly," Mahomes said on the first day of Phase 1 of OTAs Monday, via a Chiefs transcript. "What I've liked so far is how hard he works, he's been at the workouts, been at the route running and he wants more.
"He wants to continue to push himself more and more, and I think he has a hell of a great role in this offense the way he's able to run routes, the way he's able to stretch the field. I think he'll be even different than you've seen him before because I think we can utilize him in different ways (than) I think he's been utilized in yet."
Brown finished with a career-low 574 yards last season, playing in 14 games. He's missed eight games over the past two seasons with the Arizona Cardinals, finishing with 1,283 yards and seven touchdowns in that stretch.
Brown had a career-high 1,008 receiving yards with the Baltimore Ravens in 2021. The Chiefs signed Brown to a one-year contract worth up to $7 million, but $6.5 million was guaranteed at signing. He was a 1,000-yard receiver with Lamar Jackson and a trusted target for Kyler Murray, so his reputation around the league playing with good quarterbacks is strong.
Now Brown has Mahomes throwing him the ball. Mahomes believes the Chiefs are set to unlock a skill set from Brown the league hasn't seen yet.
"I think the route running is what I've been pleasantly surprised by," Mahomes said. "Just the way he's able to get in and out of his cuts, he has a good feel for space and like I said he wants to learn more and more, so I think as he gets within our offense and learns how with the freedom you have and the route running and your ability to find space I think we can utilize that over the middle of the field.
"I know he's done that in the past but I think we utilize it at an even higher load so I think it'll be something that we can really emphasize in our offense."
