The Kansas City Chiefs are less than a month away from their annual journey to St. Joseph for training camp at Missouri Western State University. Over the next month, we’ll be breaking down each position of the team’s roster heading into camp.
Starting with the quarterbacks, which is the least of the club’s worries. Employing the best at the position that the NFL has ever seen certainly makes that possible. Coming off a strong 2023 campaign, Patrick Mahomes has continued to impress. He finished with another Super Bowl victory and recorded 4,183 passing yards, 27 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions. The 28-year-old is the first QB since former Steelers signal-caller Terry Bradshaw to earn Super Bowl MVP honors in each of the last two seasons.
In just six seasons as the Chiefs’ starter, Mahomes has amassed an impressive trophy collection. This includes three Super Bowl MVPs, two league MVPs, and a long list of shattered records. There’s no question that Mahomes is well on his way toward surpassing Tom Brady as the G.O.A.T.
The bigger question is who the Chiefs have backing up Mahomes in the event he goes down to injury. Matt Moore and Chad Henne performed well as backups from 2019 to 22. Blaine Gabbert also earned a Super Bowl ring during his single season riding Mahomes’ coattails. This year, Kansas City has three new QBs that will compete for the honor of sitting and learning behind Mahomes next fall.
Carson Wentz
On April 2, the Chiefs signed 31-year-old Carson Wentz to a one-year, $3.32 million contract. He will serve as Mahomes’ primary backup. Wentz made one start for the Los Angeles Rams, completing 17-of-24 passes for 163 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception.
Formerly the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, Wentz is best remembered for his time with the Philadelphia Eagles. From 2016 to 2020, Wentz completed over 62% of his passes for 16,811 yards, 153 touchdowns, and 67 picks during his time in Philly. Since 2021, he’s become an NFL journeyman after failed stints in Indianapolis and Washington, where he only started 24 games combined.
Overall, Wentz has thrown for over 20 touchdowns in four of eight seasons as a pro. He’s also the first backup the Chiefs have signed in the Mahomes era that carries a winning record (47-45-1).
Chris Oladokun
Chris Oladokun left off with a fantastic preseason in 2023, finishing with 204 yards passing and a touchdown to interception ratio of 1-1. Which was good enough to beat out Shane Buechele on the depth chart.
Oladokun started his NFL career as a sixth-round draft pick by the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022. After failing to make the roster, general manager Brett Veach scooped him up, and he’s been with Kansas City since then.
2024 will be Oladokun’s third season with the Chiefs after agreeing to a one-year deal with the club in February. Oladokun has never started a game for Kansas City, spending the last two seasons on the practice squad. To his credit, Oladokun has been most useful in helping the Chiefs prepare for various opponents as the scout team quarterback.
Before entering the NFL, Oladokun finished a long college career at the University of South Florida (2016-18), Samford University (2019-20), and South Dakota State University (2021). His senior season at SDSU was arguably his best as he finished with 3,164 yards and 25 touchdowns in 15 games for the Jackrabbits.
At both the collegiate and professional levels, Oladokun demonstrated that he can be an effective dual threat on the field. Which is something the Chiefs and head coach Andy Reid like in their QBs.
Ian Book
Kansas City picked up Ian Book as a “Reserve/Future” signee on January 10. He was originally a fourth-round draft pick by the New Orleans Saints in 2021 and only started one game for the club as a rookie. Book completed 12-of-20 passes for 135 yards and two interceptions in his only NFL start.
In 2022, the Saints waived Book after training camp, and Philadelphia picked him up, where he sat on the team’s practice squad. Last season, he was on the practice squad of the New England Patriots.
In college, he finished an incredible five-year career with Notre Dame. Where he was a two-time team captain for the Fighting Irish and boasted a 30-5 career record – 15-0 at home – and finished with 8,948 passing yards and 72 touchdowns. Book finished as the program’s second-best passer all-time and the best since Brady Quinn.
Bottom Line
Carson Wentz will begin camp as the Chiefs’ second-string QB and primary backup to Mahomes, mostly because of his experience as a veteran. As usual with most QB camp battles ever since Mahomes became the starter, the battle for the third-string spot will be the one to watch.
This year, Christ Oladokun will fend off Ian Book for the third-string QB spot, which is almost a guaranteed spot on the practice squad. Oladokun surprised coaches last season with his powerful arm and dual-threat athleticism which were good enough to beat out Shane Buechele, who held was the third QB for three seasons before being waived last August.
