“Being nervous is a waste of time.”—Model Lindsey Wixson. It’s also been said that being nervous , or worrying, is meditating on fear. That about sums it up for where I’m at on this bandwagon that is the new Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback, Patrick Mahomes.
I’ve got problems with this Mahomes “experiment”. I call it an experiment because everybody is working on theories here. Guesses maybe. Educated guesses but guesses nonetheless. Remember this, the Chiefs traded away an All-Pro quarterback in Alex Smith so that they could hurriedly turn the cockpit controls over to a rookie. If that doesn’t make you Chief fans nervous, it should. I shouldn’t be the Lone Ranger here!
Yes, I know that Mahomes set NCAA records for single-game passing (734 yards) and single game total offense (819 yards) and they both came against mighty Oklahoma but that’s not the National Football League.
For years I’ve been massaged by the “media experts” and NFL coaches that playing quarterback in the NFL is the single most difficult job in sports. That the NFL offenses are extremely intricate and you have to have a great mind to even begin to understand and operate them. That belief has been preached from the NFL pulpits and the broadcast microphones for so long that, heck, some of us have believed it! Now add to that mix the coach of the Chiefs, Andy Reid. His intricate offense is said to be the most difficult. Reid’s game plans are an NFL offense on steroids!
Mahomes has been around an NFL offense for one year and has started and won a single game We all love the way he can sling a football, his dashing, daredevil attitude, that allows him to escape the grips of the monsters that are after him BUT, don’t forget for a second that this is an experiment and with the stakes this high, experiments make me nervous.
Remember that one of the all-time greats, Joe Montana , didn’t exactly set the world on fire his first few seasons. He only tossed 23 passes in his first season in the NFL and only became a starter midway through the 1980 season, replacing Steve DeBerg.
All-time Chiefs’ great Len Dawson took five years in the NFL to become a starter and, even then, enjoyed little success until he got reunited with his old college coach, Hank Stram.
Hall of Fame member Terry Bradshaw of the Pittsburgh Steelers was a backup behind Terry Hanratty for a season and a half and even after he became a starter was erratic, tossing many interceptions (he threw 210 interceptions over the course of his career) and was widely ridiculed by the media for his “perceived lack of intelligence.” How they could say that and still argue that operating an NFL offense required years of training and super intellect, still leaves me befuddled!
So, yes I’m nervous about this one. Is Mahomes ready to take over the offense of a football team that is the heart and soul of fans in the Midlands? After all, doesn’t our very dignity, our pride, depend on how the Chiefs fare? Lord knows, after the season that the Royals are delivering to us, fans in the Midwest need something good to happen.
I am rooting for this “experiment” to work. I am rooting for the “mad scientist” (Andy Reid) to concoct something in his laboratory that turns out really well and not another Frankenstein! I don’t think the professional sports fans in the Midwest can stand another experiment that goes down the tubes!
My hopes are high but I’m nervous!

Buddy Tabler is a guest columnist for the Great Bend Tribune and his views don’t necessarily reflect those of the paper. He can be reached at budtabler@gmail.com.