3 games Patrick Mahomes will have to win with his arm

More and more will be put on Patrick Mahomes’ plate quarterbacking the Kansas City Chiefs.

Even if Patrick Mahomes is the most transcendent quarterbacking talent the NFL has seen in quite some time, he will have to do some heavy lifting this season for the 2022 Kansas City Chiefs.

Not only is the AFC West the strongest division in the league, but Mahomes and company will have to overcome losing key players to their core like Tyreek Hill, Tyrann Mathieu and Charvarius Ward this offseason. Then again, this is why Mahomes got paid the big bucks. He already has one Super Bowl on his resume. 2022 will be a season to watch how much of a workload he can carry.

Though the Chiefs should still be an excellent team, Mahomes will have to win these three games with his arm this season.

Kansas City Chiefs: 3 games Patrick Mahomes will have to win with his arm

3. Week 13: at Cincinnati Bengals (Sunday, Dec. 4)

This game could be higher up on this list if we had a better feel for what the Cincinnati Bengals will be this year. They could experience a Super Bowl hangover, but it is hard to see Joe Burrow and this high-octane offense slowing down, as well as the defense taking a huge step back under Lou Anarumo’s direction. If all goes well for the Bengals, he may be a serious head-coaching candidate.

This Week 13 date at Cincinnati will be among the toughest road games on the Chiefs’ schedule. Weather could be a factor in the early December game. Not to say that will matter for either team that is used to playing in bad conditions this time of year, but the stage will certainly be set for this marquee game between major AFC contenders. Mahomes must avenge last year’s Bengals losses.

The Chiefs lost at Cincinnati late in the season a year ago. A few weeks later, Kansas City would collapse at home in the AFC Championship game to the Bengals. Though much has been made about the budding rivalry between Mahomes and Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Burrow has been the one who has shown he can beat the Chiefs’ star signal-caller with way greater regularity.

Three straight losses to Burrow and the Bengals will leave an awful taste in Kansas City’s mouth.