It became well known the Chiefs wanted JuJu Smith-Schuster in 2021. The veteran wide receiver said the Chiefs finished second to a Steelers return, but the AFC West power kept him on the radar and made the signing a year later. Kansas City appears to have executed a similar strategy at quarterback.
Carson Wentz spent an unexpectedly long period in free agency last year, not joining a team until the Rams added him as Matthew Stafford insurance in November. The Chiefs, it turns out, talked to the former No. 2 overall pick early in free agency. Wentz’s approach at the time led the team to move on, with Blaine Gabbert instead joining the club (and collecting a second Super Bowl ring).
“We talked to him last year when we were talking to Blaine and [Wentz] was holding off for an opportunity possibly to start,” Andy Reid said this week. “But it was good to get him in this position and if he has an opportunity to play, he has an opportunity to play. But he’s really handled it well since he’s been here. He’s a good football player.”
Wentz, 31, is now on his fifth team in five years. The Eagles and Colts traded the ex-North Dakota State standout, and the Commanders — after benching their preferred starter for a stretch — released him in late February 2023. No Wentz connections to any team emerged until he is believed to have reached out to the Jets following Aaron Rodgers‘ Achilles tear, but it is certainly possible — given the resumes — the Chiefs wanted Wentz over Gabbert.
Gabbert ended up signing with the Chiefs for barely the veteran minimum. The Chiefs used Gabbert as their starter in a meaningless Week 18 game; Wentz received the call for the Rams, who rested starters in the regular-season finale, in a game that doubled as a free agency audition.
Gabbert is going into his age-35 season; Wentz will turn 32 in December. The Chiefs have the latter on a one-year deal worth $3.33MM ($2.2MM guaranteed). Wentz has only started one game against the Chiefs — a 27-20 Eagles loss in October 2017, Alex Smith‘s final year as Kansas City’s starter — but certainly has extensive starting experience. Patrick Mahomes‘ new backup has made 93 career starts.
The Rams turned to Jimmy Garoppolo to take Wentz’s old job, continuing a run of reclamation efforts behind Stafford. Wentz becomes the Chiefs’ third QB2 in three seasons, with Gabbert having succeeded four-year backup Chad Henne. Mahomes has missed some memorable stretches, leaving a 2020 divisional-round game due to a concussion and then missing a short span during a 2022 second-round matchup. The two-time MVP missed two games during the 2019 season as well. Wentz is now the next in line should Kansas City’s seventh-year starter miss time.
1st round pick, 2nd contract, and now a career backup. Good money when you can get it!
Would you rather have 2 rings as a backup or be a HOF clear top 10 QB in NFL history without ?
Or the worse of both examples, 2 rings with an MVP and no HOF credit.
Give me the rings! That’s what you really play for, winning! Dan Marino still says ‘he’ll never know what it’s like to win a SB.’. And today’s money, rings as a back up works for me.
To be fair to the other side, Trent Dilfer has a ring without ever knowing what it’s like to be in the HoF.
And a ton of money as well. I bet 1-3% make the HoF, so the likely hood of that happening is slim. Getting a ring is what sports is all about being #1.
We all saw Aaron Donald in the SB mimicking putting the ring on his finger. He was already a 1st ballot HoF’er, everyone knew it; but he needed that ring as a final statement to his career.
Ideally, I’d think you’d need both. Being a HoFer is what makes you unique and all time accomplished, but your career would definitely feel unfinished and incomplete without the championship. Being a HoFer is all about individual talent, while the ring is a bit out of the player’s control to some degree because it also depends a lot on the team that thd player goes to.
J.J. Watt, for example, is better than probably almost any defensive player in history regardless of position (with the exception of a handful of obvious players; it’s quite a short list), but playing for the Texans at the times that he did guaranteed that he wouldn’t get a ring. He did enough individually, the team didn’t do enough on its end. However, like you said, it feels incomplete without a ring, which I’m sure that a competitive guy like Watt wishes that he had. Is that a reflection on Watt as a player? No, but it would still feel more complete were he to have one.