Will the Kansas City Chiefs make a change at the backup quarterback spot? I am willing to admit that I was wrong. Blaine Gabbert is necessary.
Blaine Gabbert is a career backup quarterback for a reason. However, if he's good enough to be trusted by Tom Brady, then perhaps Chiefs fans ought to consider him the right man to stand in steed of Patrick Mahomes when necessary.
Chad Henne did a tremendous job backing up Mahomes his first few seasons in the league. In his final season, Henne even led the Chiefs 99 yards in the postseason when Mahomes was forced out of action against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional Round. Replacing that kind of production on the fly was never going to be easy.
So, KC signed Gabbert this offseason. I, along with several other pundits, considered Shane Buechele the better option. Buechele knew the Chiefs offense. While inexperienced, he'd taken practice reps alongside Henne and Mahomes for the last few years.
If not now, then when will he step up as the next-in-line alongside Mahomes?
Evidently, Buechele may still have to wait.
NFL Rumors: Who will the Chiefs go with as their backup quarterback?
In the Chiefs second preseason game, Buechele completed all ten of his passes for 105 yards and no turnovers. That's not bad, all thing considered. In fact, it's exactly what one would ask of a backup signal-caller.
Gabbert, however, completed 7-of-8 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns (as of this writing). Matt Nagy and the Kansas City coaching staff will have to look over the tape to decide which player actually deserves the nod as backup heading into the regular season. For now, though, it appears the Chiefs have a good problem on their hands.
For once, Kansas City has too many playable quarterbacks. Both Buechele and Gabbert are capable, if called upon, to lead the Kansas City offense.
That says a lot about the player development Andy Reid has on his coaching staff. As for which player will earn the nod, that's for Reid and Co. to decide.
