In Super Bowl LV, the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line had one of the worst performances in Super Bowl history. Patrick Mahomes was pressured on 29 of of his 56 dropbacks, which is a whopping 52 percent. That means one out of every two times he intended to throw the ball, there was a defender in his face; and to make it even worse, Buccaneers defensive coordinator Todd Bowles only blitzed six times! Kansas City had some injuries and also some optouts in the 2020 season but just to ensure Mahomes never has to go through that again, the team made significant moves this offseason to revamp their offensive line, and one of them was picking up one of the top Centers in the NFL draft, Oklahoma’s Creed Humphrey.
Right now Kansas City has a plethora of stellar offensive lineman starting with a Pro Bowl Tackle in Orlando Brown Jr, All-Pro Guard Joe Thuney, guard Kyle Long, and right tackle Mike Remmers. One thing the Chiefs want is assurance that they have the right guys in the right places. One way to do that is to create competition. Austin Blythe was brought in on a one-year deal from the Rams right before Creed Humphrey fell into their lap in the second round of the draft. Everyone knows that competition brings the best out of players and every rookie needs a veteran to learn from. This Kansas City offensive line will have well rounded depth with all the veterans in the locker room, and that is exactly what Humphrey needs.
Humphrey has the skills to be an All-Pro Center with the Chiefs. One of his best attributes is getting out in space. Oklahoma would pull him out of the line, just to block for his quarterback on roll-outs:
Not only does Humphrey have the capability to pull when needed, he also has the tenacity the Chiefs need out in space. We can absolutely see Mahomes rolling out as Humphrey clears the field for him.
When Humphrey has to be the anchor on the offensive line, he can pick up the blitz and more importantly, a stunt; end over guards and even ends over tackles.
In the run-game, not only does he create lanes inside the A gap, he looks like he absolutely loves downhill zone run blocking.
Inside Zone Run game is simple for the offensive lineman — you basically just block the guy inside your play-side gap, and once that guy is out of the play, you go move upfield after the next guy.
Kansas City will love how Humphrey’s head is always on a swivel, and he’s always looking for the next guy to knock down. He commanded his O-line with Oklahoma by calling out protections, and telling teammates which defenders to pick up at the line of scrimmage.
One thing is for certain: If Humphrey gets out in space, watch for his pancake count at the end of the year!