AFC West

Many called Patrick Mahomes' dreadful second-half performance in the 2022 AFC Championship Game the worst stretch of football of his career.

Mahomes would agree.

"That second half I played, I didn't play really good football at all. Probably my worst playoff football I've played was the second half of the game. So I'm just trying to use that as a learning thing that whenever I'm struggling or a team's struggling, just find a way to get positive plays, because when you have a lead like that, you don't want to lose that lead. We played such a great first half, even if we weren't getting what we wanted in the second half, I have to get better at taking what's there to try to get some points on the board, come away and get to the Super Bowl."

After a nearly flawless first half saw Mahomes throw for three touchdowns and carry the Chiefs to a 21-10 halftime lead, the wheels fell off after halftime. Mahomes threw two interceptions and the Chiefs punted four times, allowing Cincinnati to get back in the game before earning a 27-24 win.

ESPN's QBR metric gave Mahomes a 98.0 grade (out of 100) for the first half and a 1.2 grade in the second half, the largest half-over-half gap in the metric's history (since 2006).

As far as Mahomes' postseason performance goes, the only thing that somewhat measures up is his disappointing Super Bowl LV outing against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In that instance, at least Mahomes could partially blame injuries to himself and the Chiefs offensive line.

It's clear the blown lead against the Bengals will stick in his mind a little longer.

Miami Dolphins receiver Tyreek Hill believes he was underutilized by the Kansas City Chiefs and will be playing with a more accurate quarterback next season in Tua Tagovailoa.

Suffice to say those comments were eye-opening to Patrick Mahomes.

"I'm surprised a little just because I felt like we love Tyreek here. We’ve always loved him. We still love him," Mahomes told reporters Thursday. "I saw him out at Formula 1 in Miami and everything like that. But I'm sure it had something to do with trying to get his podcast some stuff, get it rolling. But definitely I still love Tyreek. He's a one-of-a-kind player.

"But as you know in coach Reid’s offense, it takes the whole team. This offense was rolling before I got here. This offense was rolling when I was a young Cowboys fan watching the Eagles beat up on the Cowboys. So I mean, it's an offense that's more than one player—and that includes myself."

The Chiefs traded Hill to the Dolphins this offseason, acquiring first- second- and fourth-round picks in 2022 and fourth- and sixth-round selections in 2023 in the process. Hill subsequently signed a four-year, $120 million extension in Miami.

Hill opened up on his frustrations with his usage in the Chiefs offense during the first episode of his new podcast. Speaking with his agent Drew Rosenhaus and co-host Julius Collins, Hill said his relationship with the Chiefs "fell apart" over his role.

"If teams are gonna give us favorable one-on-one matchups against their best corner, I don't see why teams don’t utilize their best receiver," Hill said. "And that's where probably the Chiefs and I fell apart right there. When I’m like, 'Yo, I don't mean to talk or be a diva in some situation but can I see the ball sometime, please? Just give me the ball, please.'"

Rosenhaus described Hill as a "trooper" and credited him with never airing out his anger in the media.

"There was a lot of times during the year that we felt that Tyreek was underutilized and wasn't fully appreciated," Rosenhaus said.

From a pure numbers standpoint, it's hard to see how Hill could feel underutilized. He set career highs in targets (159) and receptions (111) while making his sixth straight Pro Bowl. However, Hill was not selected as an All-Pro after being a first-team selection in 2021. The Chiefs also had fewer explosive plays as an offense, with Hill averaging 11.2 yards per reception—a full 3.5 yards worse than the year prior.

According to most observers, Hill's big-play numbers are likely to take another hit next season going from Mahomes to Tagovailoa. The Dolphins quarterback has taken criticism over his first two NFL seasons for a seeming unwillingness—and perhaps inability—to find receivers down the field.

Hill, without catching a single regular-season pass from Tagovailoa, said he believes the Alabama product is more accurate.

“Obviously, I’m going to go with 1-5 as the strongest arm, but as far as accuracy-wise, I’m going with Tua all day," Hill said.

As far as the numbers go in that respect, Tagovailoa's 67.8 percent completion rate last season is higher than any individual Mahomes season. That said, Mahomes is a career 66.1 percent passer on attempts with a higher degree of difficulty and has a lower interception rate.

The Las Vegas Raiders donated $1 million to the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District to increase security at its schools.

"We are proud to be part of something to make the children in these schools safer," Davis said, per James Volz of the Uvalde Leader-News. "Two weeks ago, I had a conversation with [former Raider} Vann [McElroy]. He told me about the hurt his hometown was going through."

Nineteen children and two teachers were killed at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde last month when 18-year-old Salvador Ramos opened fire with an AR-15 rifle. Seventeen other people were wounded.

The incident was the deadliest school shooting in Texas history and the third-deadliest in United States history.

“Vann told me that he had a grandson attending public school," Davis said. "He said his family thought about having him go to a private school next year, but he wanted him to attend public school as Vann and his son had done growing up in Uvalde.

“He said that Uvalde was in pain and needed help. I asked him what we would do to help ease that pain.”

McElroy played for the Raiders from 1982 to 1990 as a linebacker, earning four All-Pro selections and two Pro Bowl berths. He was a graduate of Uvalde High School before moving on to play college football at Baylor.

The donation will be used for "implementing impenetrable doors and cameras inside and outside, and putting up an unscalable fence outside," according to the Uvalde Leader-News.

In the near future, a safety will sign a deal worth $20 million annually. Maybe not this offseason, but Minkah Fitzpatrick's market-setting deal sets the stage for it to happen in 2023.

On Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Fitzpatrick to a four-year, $73.6 million extension, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Since the AFC North club acquired him from the Miami Dolphins in September of 2019, he's recorded 203 tackles (144 solo), 27 pass breakups and 11 interceptions (two pick-sixes). The 25-year-old is also a two-time Pro Bowler and All-Pro.

The safety market has grown rapidly over the past year.

Last offseason, Justin Simmons (four years, $61 million), Jamal Adams (four years, $70 million) and Harrison Smith (four years, $64 million) signed big-money extensions with their respective teams.

With Fitzpatrick's contract topping the market at $18.4 million in average annual value (AAV), Derwin James and Jessie Bates III can surpass or come close to matching that mark. At 31 years old, Jordan Poyer's age will likely prevent him from getting a top-of-the-market salary if the Buffalo Bills sign him to an extension.

Even though he's coming off an All-Pro year, Poyer doesn't have a resume that compares to Smith (six Pro Bowls and an All-Pro season), who signed his new deal at 32 years old. Also, the Bills have little wiggle room in cap space with quarterback Josh Allen cashing in $43 million per year on a long-term contract.

Interestingly, agent David Mulugheta represents both James and Bates, so he can use some of the same tactics to negotiate deals for the two safeties.

Mulugheta has a much better chance to talk the Los Angeles Chargers into making James the highest-paid player at the position.

James has the same number of Pro Bowl nods as Fitzpatrick (two) but one fewer All-Pro campaign (one). Despite the former's concerning injury history, missing 29 games through four seasons, he plays a vital role in the Chargers defense as one of the most complete players at the position.

Through 36 outings, James has recorded 257 tackles (173 solo), 14 for loss, 5.5 sacks, 19 pass breakups and five interceptions. He's not quite Adams in terms of rushing the passer, but the versatile defender can supplement the pass rush if necessary. While James isn't a ball hawk, the Chargers can trust him in coverage. He's allowed just two touchdowns over the past two seasons and permitted a 63.7 passer rating in coverage last year.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Chargers will strike a deal with James, and he thinks the talented defensive back has a chance to slide above Fitzpatrick on the pay scale.

"I'm told Los Angeles definitely believes this will get done. The Chargers see James as a true roster pillar, and James can take one of two paths strategically:

1. Do a fair market deal now.

2. Wait for Fitzpatrick to go first, and then slide in around -- or slightly above -- that number."

Even at fair value, James' new contract value should exceed $70 million in total, so our projection of four years, $72 million ($39 million guaranteed) on megacontract seems feasible for Los Angeles. Remember, the Chargers have quarterback Justin Herbert on a rookie deal for at least another year, so the front office can splurge on one of its best players.

If the Chargers hesitate to pay James $39 million in guarantees because of concerns about his durability, they can inflate the AAV of his deal and push that figure closer to $20 million.

Mulugheta will go through tougher negotiations with the Cincinnati Bengals if he tries to get Bates a contract that resets the market.

Unlike James, Bates doesn't have Pro Bowl or All-Pro recognition on his resume. He's also less versatile and more of a deep cover safety with the tendency to take the ball away. Lastly, the 25-year-old struggled through the first half of the 2021 campaign and finished the regular season with 88 tackles, four pass breakups and an interception—all career lows for a single term.

However, James made his presence felt in coverage during the Bengals' playoff run to Super Bowl LVI, registering six pass breakups and two interceptions in four games.

Though Cincinnati selected safety Dax Hill in the first round of the 2022 draft, quarterback Joe Burrow praised Bates for his performance on the field and leadership in the locker room, something a rookie cannot provide in his first year:

Joe Burrow says he & Jessie Bates are about to take a trip to Vegas.

“Business is business.”

▶️ Here’s everything Joe said about @jlbiii3:#Bengals @WCPO pic.twitter.com/BtWXwIH07W

— Caleb Noe (@CalebNoeTV) June 14, 2022

As the face of the franchise, Burrow understands when he speaks, people in the organization listen to him. While that doesn't mean the Bengals will back up the Brinks truck for Bates, the fifth-year pro has made it clear that he wants a long-term deal.

During an appearance on NFL Network (h/t SI.com's James Rapien), Bates talked about his contract situation.

"I'm not too worried about being the highest-paid safety," Bates said. "But I do know value over cost and I think that is something that we are going to continue to evaluate.”

According to USA Today's Tyler Dragon, Bates has "no intentions" of playing with the franchise tag for the 2022 season.

This year, the league set the franchise tender for safeties at $12.9 million. If the Bengals come to a long-term agreement with Bates, he would probably sign a deal worth $16-17 million per year with at least $33 million guaranteed, which doesn't top Fitzpatrick but keeps him within the top five at the position in both salary aspects.

As arguably a top-five safety in the league, Bates will eventually benefit from Fitzpatrick's new contract because of the rise in the market ceiling.

Though Bates doesn't have a resume that compares to Fitzpatrick's or James' in accolades, he's racked up impressive numbers through 63 contests, logging 408 tackles (289 solo), five for loss, 35 pass breakups and 10 interceptions (one pick-six).

More reliable in availability than James, Bates could push for a high amount of guaranteed money. Perhaps he can match Marcus Williams, who signed a five-year, $70 million deal with $37 million in guarantees with the Baltimore Ravens in free agency. The latter has similar coverage numbers (38 pass breakups, 15 interceptions and one pick-six) to the former, but he's played one more year in the league.

The Bengals can also offer Bates a contract AAV that's close to Fitzpatrick's and drop the amount of guaranteed money to keep up with the competitive market, which may bump him up to $17-18 million annually.

If Cincinnati refuses to sign Bates to a long-term deal before the July 15 deadline, he can turn that team decision into a bigger payday for himself with a change of heart on his current stance.

With a stellar 2022 campaign, Bates can raise his contract demands. Coming off a year with career-high numbers, he can possibly command a deal worth $20 million per year or use Fitzpatrick's deal as a template for his asking price.

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Player salary rankings are provided by Over the Cap.

Maurice Moton covers the NFL for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter @MoeMoton.

Now that he's playing for a division rival, Khalil Mack knows the boos are coming from Las Vegas Raiders fans when his Los Angeles Chargers arrive in Week 1 of the NFL season.

He just doesn't see it as a special occurrence.

"It's just another game, but also understanding that I've heard that crowd cheer me on. Now, I’m going to hear the crowd boo us. It's a full-circle moment. I'm just looking forward to having fun and playing football again," Mack told reporters.

From an outside perspective, it's easy to see why Mack would see the Raiders as just another opponent. He's four years removed from playing for the franchise, and he went head-to-head against the Raiders twice during his tenure with the Chicago Bears.

Not only has the first-time novelty worn off, but the Raiders were located in an entirely different state when he donned the silver and black. Every person involved in jettisoning him to Chicago has been fired.

It is, in just about every possible respect, a completely different organization than the one he left.

Mack is coming off the first injury-plagued season of his career, missing nine games and failing to make the Pro Bowl for the first time since 2014. It's likely Mack is being 100 percent honest in saying he's more excited to simply be back on the football field making an impact in 2022.

The Chargers do not play the Bears this season; Chicago traded him for a 2022 second-round pick and a 2023 sixth-round pick in March.

The Kansas City Chiefs have reportedly re-signed running back Jerick McKinnon on a one-year deal, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler.

The 30-year-old appeared in 13 games last season, totaling 62 rushing yards on 5.2 yards per carry while adding 13 catches for 107 yards. He scored his lone regular-season touchdown in a Week 18 win over the Denver Broncos.

McKinnon's role expanded significantly in the postseason, as he totaled 150 rushing yards and 165 receiving yards with a touchdown in three games.

He saw 158 offensive snaps in just three postseason games compared to 172 in the entire regular season, while his 34 playoff carries nearly tripled his 12 during the year.

Starter Clyde Edwards-Helaire was dealing with a shoulder injury that cost him nearly a month of action, but he was active for the final two postseason games as McKinnon stole the majority of the backfield touches.

McKinnon's signing further jumbles the backfield heading into 2022.

Edwards-Helaire has started every regular-season game he has played in the NFL, but the 2020 first-round pick has struggled with injuries and only had 646 yards from scrimmage in 10 games last season.

McKinnon's skills as a receiver could net him more work considering he totaled 33 catches with the San Francisco 49ers in 2020 and 51 receptions in 2017 with the Minnesota Vikings. He lost two prime years of his career (2018-2019) after tearing his ACL in his right knee in 2018 during a team workout after signing a four-year, $30 million deal with the 49ers.

With former Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Ronald Jones II also joining the Chiefs on a one-year deal this offseason and Derrick Gore impressing in limited work last year, the team could have a full-blown running back committee next season.