KANSAS CITY, Mo. — For a variety of reasons the last few seasons, Patrick Mahomes at times appeared off-kilter and tentative. On occasions, he even seemed skittish in an often-precarious pocket.

Because of his transcendent talent and uncanny find-a-way mindset, he still was pivotal — along with some top-notch defense — in leading the Chiefs to the last three Super Bowls and being MVP in the two they won.

The Chiefs’ offense was a clunky 15th in the NFL the last two seasons, though. And between offensive line issues such as the left-tackle turnstile last season and a receiver group decimated by injuries, Mahomes seldom played with the fluidity that earned him NFL MVP honors in his first season as a starter and defined his early years.

But that gridlock now seems behind the Chiefs and Mahomes after four straight performances harkening back to that more dynamic time ... and landing Mahomes as the current betting favorite for his third MVP award as the Chiefs (4-3) prepare to play host to Washington (3-4) on “Monday Night Football.”

It’s not just that the offensive line is flourishing and that Mahomes for the first time has at his disposal the trifecta of Xavier Worthy, Rashee Rice and Hollywood Brown — along with a replenished Travis Kelce.

It’s the trust and comfort that comes with all that. And how that in turn enables him to play with a clean mind and the focus and clarity that comes with that.

When I asked him Wednesday if he felt more of a sense of freedom on the field than he had for a while, the question was barely out of my mouth when he began to answer.

“Yeah, for sure,” he said. “I think I kind of went through, like, variations of … (being) too aggressive and maybe not as aggressive enough. And then now I think I’m just going out there and just playing. Just having fun.

“I’m going through my progressions, making reads and not trying to overthink things. I think (at) some points the last few years, I overthink it, and I want to be perfect with every single read. It’s like, at the end of the day, you’ve got to go out there and play football.”

Now, he added, “I feel like it’s given me confidence to be who I am.”

With another dimension enhancing the earlier version:

At 30, Mahomes’ maturity and experience give him perspective he might not have had before.

That shows up in any number of ways.

Like having what he calls a “long-term vision” of the season that makes him appreciate learning from the moments that “might be not be as pretty as you want” is part of building toward when it matters most.

And through a deeper understanding of the offense, which includes plays informed by his input of concepts — “can we do something like this?” — that are then composed into form by coach Andy Reid, offensive coordinator Matt Nagy and other offensive assistants.

So his comprehension of the context of plays, what they’re trying to affect and more broadly set up, is such that he gets it now, he said, “even more than any point in my career.”

Same when it comes to a somehow still-expanding mind-meld with coach Andy Reid, a vivid example of which took place in the 31-0 victory over the Raiders on Sunday.

They’ve had a wavelength since they met on Mahomes’ pre-draft visit in 2017, and they’ve long since had occasion to finish each other’s sentences. But this was a real-time illustration of what that can mean.

During a Raiders timeout as the Chiefs had a first-and-goal at their 3-yard line late in the first half, Mahomes went to the sideline to speak with Reid.

“He goes, ‘Before you even say anything, do you like this play?’” Mahomes recalled. “I said, ‘That’s what I was about to ask you.’ ”

As it happened, the like-minded play call led to a throw Mahomes hadn’t made all season: a back-shoulder pass to Rice for a touchdown that gave the Chiefs a 21-0 lead.

The Chiefs had a couple options on it, Mahomes added, but that was the one he wanted.

“Once we got the one-on-one,” he said, “it was easy.”

Just like a lot of things look for the first time in a while to Mahomes, who over the last four games has completed 71.3% of his passes (102 of 143) for 1,131 yards with 11 touchdown passes and just one interception.

In that span, his passer rating has been 124.8 or more three times.

By that measure, he had only one better rating all of last season, three in 2023 and four in 2022 — meaning eight times in his previous 61 starts before this recent resurgence.

Accordingly, the Chiefs are averaging 31.5 points in those four games — a sum reflecting not merely Mahomes but, he wants you to know, the synergy of numerous moving parts.

The line is “blocking really well,” Mahomes said, “which has given me a lot of confidence to just sit in the pocket and go through the reads. And guys are getting open.

“And so it makes my job easier whenever you, like, know that what you think before the play is going to happen happens and the guys get open. … That’s the simple version of it.”

The more sophisticated version is about what it’s empowered in him.

At times the last few years, he would almost preemptively eliminate throwing certain routes because they shouldn’t logically be open against a given defensive scheme.

“So I would just move on,” he said.

Now, though, he’s back to being more true to his progressions and reads — and opening his mind back up.

Not so much through the improv that has always animated his game but through all the possibilities of the play as designed.

Asked for an example of a throw he wouldn’t even have considered last season, he recalled throwing deep to Tyquan Thornton in Jacksonville.

“In previous years, I would have never even looked over there to Tyquan, because the coverage dictated that it was not going to be open,” he said. “... He’s not necessarily supposed to be part of the read, but he is.”

As he thought about the play, Mahomes said it reminded him of “stuff I did early in my career.”

The stuff dreams were made of then ... and by all appearances again now.

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