It took some time, but the Kansas City Chiefs finally have Josh Gordon in rhythm after a long stretch of minimal production since his signing in September.
Gordon scored his first touchdown as a member of the team against the Raiders in Week 14. Though he only caught two passes for nine yards on three targets, at times Gordon looked like the All-Pro talent that made him a household name in 2013 when he led the league in receiving yards.
Andy Reid commented on the breakout performance Gordon turned out, noting that time remains for him to continue developing within his system as he puts forth full effort to becoming a gamechanger as he has been in the past.
“Josh has been doing a great job,” Reid told reporters. “For him to get that [touchdown] and another catch was great.”
His quarterback Patrick Mahomes also had something to say about the work Gordon has put in to get to where he is now. Mahomes seemed remorseful that Gordon hadn’t seen more targets in recent matchups, but relieved that he was able to get him the ball in a key situation to break the seal on his scoring production.
“When guys put in work like he [Gordon] has over these last few weeks and obviously hasn’t had the targets and catches that we’ve wanted him to have, just because of the flow of the game and how we’ve played, for him to get that touchdown – I mean we worked on that play for a couple weeks now and we were set up in the perfect area,” Mahomes explained. “He hit it and it worked perfectly, so for him to make a big play for us in the game, it’s just going to help him continue to get that confidence that we can go out there and we can utilize him and his talents to help the offense.”
Gordon wasn’t nearly as long-winded in his response to a question about the touchdown in his postgame interview. Leaving very little doubt about how he felt, Gordon described the experience with gratitude and understandable relief that seemed fitting for a player with his background. After bouncing around the league and dealing with personal issues that have kept him off the field over the last several seasons, Gordon let everyone know exactly how he felt as succinctly as possible.
“It’s exciting,” He told reporters. “It’s rewarding, a dream come true. It’s a blessing.”
Time will tell what becomes of Gordon’s role in the offense, especially as the playoffs approach and Kansas City is hitting their stride. His addition to the team gave the Chiefs a depth at receiver that is only now coming to fruition as he works his way up the depth chart and has started seeing more consistent snaps when opportunities arise to show what he has left in the tank.