Kansas City is reportedly bringing in a new veteran quarterback to back up Patrick Mahomes for this coming season.
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When Chad Henne retired following Super Bowl LVII’s win over the Philadelphia Eagles, the Kansas City Chiefs were forced to find a new backup quarterback. After Blaine Gabbert’s one-year stint with the eventual Super Bowl LVIII champs, general manager Brett Veach found himself in a familiar position.
With the calendar turning to April, Kansas City has its new signal-caller behind Patrick Mahomes. Per multiple reports, former Pro Bowler and 2016 No. 2 overall draft pick Carson Wentz is singing with the Chiefs.
According to NFL Network analyst and former Chiefs quarterback Chase Daniel, the Chiefs “wanted to sign Wentz last year but he thought he was worth more” than their offer. Wentz eventually signed with the Los Angeles Rams during the 2023-24 campaign. He started in Week 18 and defeated the San Francisco 49ers, completing 17 of 24 passes for 163 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. He also ran for 56 yards and logged another score on the ground.
Prior to the start of last offseason’s free agency, Kansas City was listed as a favorite to land Wentz as a pickup. At the time, I wrote about that potential acquisition here on Arrowhead Report:
In a vacuum, Wentz makes some sense for the Chiefs. He’s capable of catching lightning in a bottle for short stints and he still has the ceiling of someone who can make a few plays down the stretch of a game. With that said, he’s shown over the last few years that he simply can’t be trusted to take care of the football or play a winning style of game for any sustained period. That, combined with a price tag that could very well be out of Kansas City’s preferred reach, raises serious doubts about the aforementioned odds. It would be a surprise to see Wentz in a Chiefs uniform next season.
While Wentz initially believed the price tag wasn’t aligning, a lot can change in a year. Now several seasons removed from his solid 2021 campaign with the Indianapolis Colts, he’s firmly in backup territory and doesn’t have a market as a possible starting candidate. Since leaving the Colts, Wentz is 3-5 as a starter with an 81.8 passer rating. It’s safe to say he’s nowhere near the same player he was during his heyday as a member of the Philadelphia Eagles.
With all of that said, Wentz remains a very intriguing depth piece. He’s a big-bodied quarterback and a plus athlete even at age 31, adding dynamic elements to Kansas City’s offense. He also has plenty of experience under his belt and can make winning plays when on his game. Should Mahomes go down with an injury this coming season, there aren’t many backups the team would like to have more than Wentz.
The journeyman now joins his fifth team in as many seasons, looking to chase a championship with the Chiefs and hit the open market again in early 2025. This is a winning opportunity for Wentz, as well as a potentially fruitful partnership for Kansas City.