en with the first pick in the draft after Cleveland selected Baker Mayfield in 2018.“First off, he’s faster and quicker than I thought,” Johnson said of his early look at

The countdown to the Patrick Mahomes II era in Kansas City began the moment the Chiefs traded up to select the strong-armed quarterback in the first round of last year’s draft.

Officially http://www.eaglesfootballauthentics.com/zach-brown-jersey-authentic , it is down to about six weeks.

Practically, it has already reached zero.

The Chiefs agreed to trade veteran quarterback Alex Smith to the Washington Redskins late Monday, a deal that will become official with the start of the new league year on March 14. In doing so, the Chiefs made a bold statement that they’re ready for Mahomes, a prolific passer during his college days at Texas Tech, to assume the starting job for the foreseeable future.

Mahomes dazzled coach Andy Reid and his staff during training camp, making the kinds of downfield throws that Smith could never accomplish. And when he made his regular-season debut in Week 17, when the Chiefs were already assured of the AFC West title and the No. 4 seed in the playoffs, he not only played well but returned in the fourth quarter to lead the winning drive against the Broncos.

It was the kind of performance – and the kind of moxie – that made Reid draw comparisons to another of his prot锟絞锟絪 from his days with the Packers: Brett Favre.

Those are big shoes to fill. Then again, so are the ones Smith is leaving behind.

For all the angst he caused fans by going 1-4 in the playoffs, Smith succeeded in stabilizing a franchise that had been turning over quarterbacks for years. He went 50-26 as a starter and made a couple of Pro Bowl appearances http://www.raidersauthorizedshops.com/authentic-isaiah-johnson-jersey , setting a slew of franchise records in the process.

”Alex, you are the definition of a true leader and your professionalism helped me grow as a player,” Chiefs offensive guard Laurence Duvernay-Tardif said in a statement posted to Twitter.

”Can’t say enough about the type of friend and teammate Alex Smith has been since getting to Kansas City,” Chiefs fullback Anthony Sherman said, adding ”the Sherman family will miss the Smith family.”

Yet the Chiefs knew they were going to move on from Smith in part because of the hefty price tag that came with the final year of his contract. And his strong performance last season made Smith a hot commodity with at least five teams along with the Redskins.

That bidding war, even this early in the offseason, drove up the Chiefs’ asking price.

They wound up solving more than one problem in the trade with Washington: The Chiefs, drained of draft picks by previous trades, got a third-round choice in April; they acquired Kendall Fuller, one of the league’s top slot cornerbacks and a potential starter on the outside opposite Marcus Peters; and they freed up nearly $16 million in salary cap space to make additional moves in free agency.

Kansas City now has a pick in the second round and two in the third, along with selections in the later rounds Devin Bush Jersey , which could be used to address other pressing issues on defense.

Fuller certainly addressed one of them. He was a first-round talent who dropped to the third round coming out of Virginia Tech because of injury concerns, yet has played to a first-round grade – and stayed healthy – during his first two seasons with in the league. Scot McCloughan, the former Redskins general manager who drafted him in 2016, said on Twitter shortly after news of the trade broke: ”I would never have traded Kendall. He can play inside and outside, he’s high character, young and a football player.”

He’s also a bargain. Fuller will count $647,500 against the salary cap in 2018 and $750,000 the next season, giving the Chiefs a starting-caliber cornerback at a discount rate.

The Chiefs are expected to free up additional cap space by restructuring or moving on from some of their veterans, such as linebackers Tamba Hali and Derrick Johnson. That in turn gives them some financial flexibility to sign some of their young stars to long-term deals – Peters and wide receiver Tyreek Hill, for example – or pursue help for their shortcomings in free agency.

They could still use help in the defensive backfield http://www.steelersfootballauthentics.com/diontae-johnson-jersey-authentic , linebacker and pass rush remains an issue, the offensive line needs additional depth and the wide receiver corps could use another target.

Now that the Chiefs have found a trade partner for Smith, the work in those areas begins.

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Arizona running back David Johnson believes it could be a grand year.Two grand, even.Johnson came close to having 1,000 yards rushing and receiving once before and believes he can do it under new coach Kliff Kingsbury’s high-octane offense.“I definitely hope that a thousand/thousand is reachable and that’s always going to be my goal, with the team coming first,” Johnson said after organized team activities Wednesday.Only two running backs in NFL history have had 1,000 rushing and receiving in the same season: San Francisco’s Roger Craig in 1985 and St. Louis’ Marshall Faulk in 1999. Johnson was close in a breakout 2016, when he had 1,239 rushing yards and 879 receiving. Christian McCaffrey threatened last year with 1,098/867.Johnson has suffered through a pair of frustrating seasons since Justin Layne Jersey , however. He missed all but one game in 2017 after suffering a wrist injury in the season opener, and his totals were down when the Cardinals went 3-13 last year as defenses stacked the running lanes while daring rookie quarterback Josh Rosen to throw. Johnson gained 940 yards rushing (3.6 per carry) and 446 yards receiving.He sees a better fit now.“I think’s it going to be a dynamic offense,” Johnson said. “I think it is going to be a lot different because we are going to be at home in the shotgun. We’re spreading it out a little more. More space out there on the field. It is going to really helpful because only having to worry about one guy tackling you compared to three, four guys loading the box.“I think it is going to be similar to 2016. I think it will be better for me and I will be utilized as a running back and a receiver. A lot more opportunities to get the ball. A lot more opportunities to score and help out the team. I’m very excited.”Kingsbury, whose offense at Texas Tech frequently lined up in four-wide receiver sets, called the halfback in his system “pivotal.”“They have to be able to do it all, and we have a guy who can,” Kingsbury said. “Excited to use him in a bunch of different ways and try to get him the football … You can tell he has run routes before. He looks like he’ll be a tough matchup on some linebackers.”The Cardinals are in the early stages of installing their offense, but Johnson has seen enough to like the system.“I like his mentality,” Johnson said of Kingsbury. “We are trying to get a lot of plays in on offense. No huddle, because it makes it hard for the defense to call plays. They might not call blitzes as much.“I think he’s been tremendous not just the offense but as a coach overall. Straight to the point. Telling guys what he expects out of the whole team . I like what it has been like. The personnel we have. There are so many weapons we added to the offense.”Foremost http://www.steelersfootballauthentics.com/benny-snell-jr.-jersey-authentic , of course, is No. 1 draft choice quarterback Kyler Murray, the Heisman Trophy winner last year and the second straight Oklahoma quarterback to be taken with the first pick in the draft after Cleveland selected Baker Mayfield in 2018.“First off, he’s faster and quicker than I thought,” Johnson said of his early look at Murray.“And I think a lot of people underestimate how great he can throw. He throws an accurate dart. I see him in the quarterback drills, throwing it at the net, and he’s hitting five in a row and stuff like that.”Murray and Johnson seem to building a rapport.“He’s been great at the game,” Murray said of Johnson. “He’s seen a lot of football. He’s played a lot of football. I think we’ll be pretty versatile, as far as me and him go.”