Patrick Mahomes on Chiefs WR production: 'If I start playing better, everybody will start playing better'

Mahomes says he hasn't played 'very good'

The defending Super Bowl champions are 3-1 and sit in first in the AFC West, but their level of play is not up to former MVP Patrick Mahomes' standards. The offense has taken a step back and No. 15 says that all starts with how he looks on the field.

The Chiefs were expected to be a top team in the league and so far they are, though it's clear they still have some improving they could do. 

"I just haven't played very good to start the season," Mahomes said (via team transcript), "so I think if I start playing better, everybody will start playing better."

The 28-year-old said sometimes struggles will come and he just focuses on getting better with each practice and game. 

"You just have to go out there and keep shooting it down the field," Mahomes said. "That's how I've always been wired. You just come in every single day and work and try to continue to get better and usually that stuff kind of figures itself out. I've had spots like this in my career where I haven't had the best few weeks in a row and so I have to make sure that I can go back to the fundamentals and try to be better for the team and then rely on other guys to make plays."

When looking at how he can make these improvements, the two-time Super Bowl champion said, "I think that's somewhere where I can be better, is just getting the ball out of my hands and let these other guys make plays."

The Chiefs lost JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman this offseason, two solid wideouts who Mahomes could rely on. Head coach Andy Reid acknowledged that the wide receivers as a whole are less experienced and complimented their production so far. 

When asked if there was a concern over the receivers, Reid said, "We have a couple young guys we're kind of bringing along, but I think they're doing a pretty good job, yeah."

The team's leader in receptions is tight end Travis Kelce, who despite missing one game, is atop the team with 17 catches, along with 115 yards. Rookie Rashee Rice is their top wide receiver with 10 catches for 90 yards.

Kadarius Toney has nine catches for 57 yards, Skyy Moore is at seven catches for 113 yards, Justin Watson comes in with eight catches for 163 yards and Marquez Valdez-Scantling has six receptions for 104 yards so far. 

Through four games, Mahomes has 1,006 passing yards with eight touchdowns and is averaging 251.5 yards per game, a career low in that category. 

Their offensive issues are ones some teams would love to have. The expectation in K.C. has been Super Bowl or bust for a few years now and with a tough road through the AFC the team knows it needs to be at its very best to defend it's Super Bowl crown. 

Next up for Mahomes and Co. are the Minnesota Vikings, who are currently 1-3. The game will be at U.S. Bank Stadium at 4:25 p.m. ET on Sunday.