Fantasy Football: Patrick Mahomes owners should stay firm, avoid panic

It wouldn't be an NFL season if fans weren't already overreacting to the results of one game.

The Detroit Lions picked up a massive win on Thursday Night Football with an incredible performance, upsetting the defending champion Kansas City Chiefs 21-20. But it was just one game.

If you were starting Patrick Mahomes Thursday night, you were likely hoping for a massive start to your fantasy season. That didn't happen, as Mahomes put up the kind of paltry numbers that you don't usually see from him.

This has led to chatter from all directions about how Mahomes got exposed and that he's not good without his No.1 target, Travis Kelce. But if you are buying into any of that or panicking over your top QB, let's reel it in for a second.

As a long-time Mahomes owner myself, I've always gotten a good laugh out of those who talk about "all of the weapons" that he has. He has Kelce and he had Tyreek Hill. That was it. On Thursday night, he was throwing the ball to a bunch of curtain jerkers and one of those, Kadarius Toney, was about as bad as one player can be in an NFL game.

But this is nothing new for Mahomes. Of course, it makes a difference to have Kelce on the field, but he can't throw him the ball on every play. He's still going to be distributing the ball to the likes of Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Skyy Moore, Toney and Justin Watson. That was the case last season and Mahomes threw for over 5,200 yards with 41 touchdowns while leading the Chiefs to a Super Bowl victory.

Mahomes and the Chiefs will bounce back. Kelce will get back on the field and this team is going to be fine. It was the kickoff game to the 2023 season and you had to know the Lions were going to give them their best shot.

Even without Kelce and a ridiculous amount of drops made by Toney, Mahomes still completed 21 passes and threw two TDs. He also led the team in rushing with 45 yards on the ground.

Mahomes was likely the first QB taken in your draft this year and if you have him in a dynasty league, you're obviously standing pat (you are, right?). This kind of performance will be an anomaly and you should be full of confidence that he will bounce back in a big way.