Carson Wentz Ready to Make Most of ‘Good Fit’ With KC Chiefs in 2024
Fresh off the free agent market, Wentz is excited to land in Kansas City for what will be his ninth season in the league.
The Kansas City Chiefs have a new quarterback in town, and he's very clearly entering a backup situation. That role doesn't appear to bother Carson Wentz anymore, though, as the veteran signal-caller embraces this era of his career and was welcomed to Kansas City on Thursday as he spoke to local media.
Wentz, a former No. 2 overall draft pick, has seen and done quite a bit dating back to 2016. In some ways, he's the same player he once was. He's a well-built quarterback with a strong arm and a knack for making the most of his athletic gifts. In others, however, it's obvious that Wentz has changed. He isn't anywhere near the level of star he blossomed into with the Philadelphia Eagles. Heck, he's not even (proven to be) the solid starter he was back in 2021 with the Indianapolis Colts.
Wentz's new reality as he enters his age-31 season is this: being a reserve. Now hungry for another Super Bowl and wanting to do whatever he can to win, he says joining the Chiefs felt like the best possible decision for him.
“Lots of unknowns about the future; I’ll take it one day at a time, first and foremost,” Wentz said. “Big intrigue to want to come here. Why I’m here today is just the winning culture. Seeing it from afar and seeing it from around the league the last couple of years, just the culture Coach (Andy) Reid has kind of set. You see it, and I’ve admired it for years. That was a big piece of the puzzle for me and the desire to be here on a winning team, in a good culture, in a good community with a good fanbase, it just seemed like a good fit.”
The 2023-24 campaign saw Wentz sign with the Los Angeles Rams relatively late into the season. He played in two games for the eventual NFC wild card club, even making a start in Week 18 against the San Francisco 49ers. In that contest, Wentz completed just under 71% of his passes and had three total touchdowns. It served as a temporary reminder of what he can offer a team when on the field.
Of course, Kansas City is hoping those on-field offerings happen at practice or during pre-game warmups. Patrick Mahomes has as much job security as anyone to ever play the sport, and the two-time NFL MVP is eyeing a bounce-back 2024 following a down statistical campaign. Wentz will mark the third different backup Mahomes has had in three seasons, following Chad Henne and Blaine Gabbert.
The Chiefs remain remarkably consistent in surrounding Mahomes with an older, experienced backup who's more than fine with coming off the bench and holding a clipboard. Wentz, despite being younger than Henne and Gabbert and having a much higher ceiling, is exactly that. His career arc is far from a normal one, although Wentz said he appreciates every lesson he's been taught over the last decade. This is just another step along the journey.
"You learn quickly to just take things one day at a time and try to be grateful,” Wentz said. “Make the most of whatever opportunity God puts in front of you. I’ve learned that I have an amazing wife, an amazing family and amazing support staff within my own friendship and family group. Life doesn’t always go the way we always plan and things don’t always work out, but God is good and God is the one writing the story.
"For me, my faith has grown, my character has grown. Whatever the situation I’m in, whether I’m the one out there playing, whether I’m on the sideline wearing a hat, whatever it is. Last year, I was at home a lot more. I was waiting for a call, so I was being a dad a lot more. Whatever door God opens, just trying to faithfully walk through it. My faith has really grown and strengthened because of that, because of the different circumstances that have come up. I’m grateful for them.”
