AFC Notes: Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs, Colts, Texans

Chiefs

ESPN analyst Jon Gruden believes Patrick Mahomes landed in a “perfect situation” for his future development.

“He’s in a perfect situation,” Gruden said of Mahomes, via Terez A. Paylor of the Kansas City Star. “He’s 21 years old, he’s a true junior … he is nowhere near a finished product, mentally … and certainly, he’s not a finished product physically.

“You’ve got to remember, this guy played baseball in the spring most of the time. He really hasn’t been a full-time football player for very long. So I think a year of fundamental work, a year of conditioning, is going to help him launch his career a year from now and really (help him) be a guy that can take the reins.”

Some have compared Mahomes to Hall of Famer Brett Favre for his gunslinger mentality and Gruden can see the comparison.

“I haven’t said that very often, and that’s a comparison you don’t like to put on anybody,” Gruden said. “But we were there for the beginning of Favre and there are a lot of similarities in the way they play, the way they see the game and the way they throw the ball.”

Colts

• Mike Wells considers DT Johnathan Hankins and first-round S Malik Hooker to be the Colts’ best defensive additions this offseason.
• Wells mentions that Indianapolis has been looking for a big body to anchor the middle of their defensive line for years and Hankins should be able to step in and fill that role.
• The area where Hooker can really help the Colts’ defense in 2017 is by creating turnovers, according to Wells.
• Wells adds that barring a situation where Hooker misses more time than anticipated, he should be in line to open the season as a starter.

Texans

• Sarah Barshop of ESPN mentions that the Texans don’t typically negotiate contract with players who have two years remaining on their current agreements, but LT Duane Brown may have more leverage than normal this year, due to the team’s lack of offensive line depth.
• In case you missed it, Brown has skipped the early part of voluntary OTAs. (NFLTR)
• Barshop can’t see him holding out into the regular season, but this is at least something to watch in the coming months.
• As for the Texans’ offensive line, Barshop projects it to be: LT Brown, LG Xavier Su’a-Filo, C Nick Martin, RG Jeff Allen, RT Chris Clark.