Kansas spent the offseason reshaping its skill positions more than any other unit, and that's the story here. Jalon Daniels is gone, and with him the most productive player this program has had in years, leaving the new signal-caller to inherit an offense that still projects as above average on the strength of its incoming talent. Dylan Edwards arrives from Kansas State to help replace Harry Stewart III and Johnny Thompson Jr. in the backfield, while Nik McMillan (41.6 PPA transfer from Buffalo) and Nahzae Cox (20.7 PPA from Middle Tennessee) give the passing game two new outside targets to offset the losses of Emmanuel Henderson Jr. and other departed pass catchers. Chase Jenkins arrived from Rice as part of a genuine quarterback competition, adding another layer of uncertainty to a room that returned zero percent of its snap share from a year ago. The defense, by contrast, held onto most of its pieces and enters the season as the more stable half of the roster — which matters, because it was that defense that needed the bigger jump after propping up a 5-7 finish a year ago. It now projects as roughly average rather than a liability, but 'roughly average' still needs to hold against a slate that includes trips to Utah, Kansas State and TCU.

JP+ pegs Kansas at 6.6 projected wins, a number that reflects a team with real offensive upside but genuine uncertainty at the position that touches every snap. The gap between that projection and any rosier market expectation traces directly to the concentration risk up top — a wide receiver room and backfield full of new names, a quarterback battle still unresolved, and a coaching staff asking largely new pieces to gel fast against a schedule that saves its easiest tests for home dates against UCF, Middle Tennessee and Long Island University. If the new signal-caller plays like the arrivals around him project and the defense's continuity translates into steadier weekly performance, this team pushes well past its projection and into bowl contention. If the quarterback answer takes time to sort out, the shakier road trips could turn a promising portal class into another season of near-misses.