The Chiefs, for the past two weeks, have struggled a little offensively coming into their game Sunday against the Bucs. By struggling, I mean they were a little inconsistent. In the first game of the year against the Cardinals, they looked incredible. In the second game, they went up against a fully healthy chargers team.
The Chiefs have one of the best pass rush duos in the NFL. Against the Colts in Week 3, They did almost everything they could wrong on offense and still had a chance to win the game late. Against the Bucs, They played about as good of a game as they have all year and still left points on the board. So let’s go through what they did to get back on track.
Offensive Line Domination
I say this with a fair amount of confidence. When the Chiefs’ O-Line played as they did on Sunday, they might have the best O-line in the NFL. Their interior three linemen might be the best interior in the NFL. We have such great athletes on the line that I was really happy to see how much we were using pulling guards and tackles. This was a statement game for them. No one so far this year has run against the Bucs with any level of success, and the Chiefs emphasized it in their game plan. The Chiefs ran the ball to the tune of 5.1 yards per carry. They were there to send a message to the rest of the NFL that The Chiefs can run the ball with brutal and beautiful efficiency.
Patrick Mahomes is Not Human
There are maybe three quarterbacks in the NFL who can do what Mahomes does on seemingly a weekly basis. Mahomes was throwing the check-downs early on in the game and not pressing to get a deep pass. However, the moment he saw a receiver or a tight end open downfield, he threw a dart. He was capitalizing on the Bucs’ mistakes and putting his passes in places only his receivers could catch them. He threw a pass to Marquez Valdes-Scantling early in the game and put it high enough that only MVS with his 6’4″ frame could bring it in. With Mahomes’ circus throw in the goal line, I have no idea how to break that down besides saying Mahomes’ ability to keep his eyes searching for open receivers even when he is scrambling is incredible.
Chiefs Tight-End Versatility
The Chiefs might have the most underrated tight-end unit in the NFL. This group is headlined by the greatest tight-end ever in Travis Kelce, Matchup nightmare Jody Fortson, and swiss army knife Noah Grey. Each of these players excelled in the assigned roles they were given on Sunday. Fortson used his size to create a mismatch in the red zone that led to his touchdown. Noah Grey was used for a “QB” sneak to get another touchdown. Since everyone was looking at Mahomes, he could sneak under center and take the snap and drive into the endzone. Then Travis Kelce was used early and often. He ran great routes that created separation from defenders and made plays whenever his number was called.
Chiefs Opportunistic Defense
The Chiefs’ defense has looked really good through four weeks. Chris Jones is the second most dominant interior defensive lineman behind Aaron Donald. L’Jarius Sneed looks like the best blitzing corner and one of the best slot corners in the NFL, and we are missing Trent McDuffie, our awesome rookie CB and Willie Gay Jr., our Energizer bunny linebacker. The defense played so well early on with Brady getting rid of the ball so fast I’m not very concerned about the defensive line. I’m also not concerned about giving up 31 points to Tom Brady because it’s Brady and Mike Evans, and they are a great offense. Whenever the Bucs made the game “close,” the offense went down and scored again. The defense played well enough to keep the game just out of reach for the Bucs’ offense.
Personnel Decisions
The Chiefs, I think, made a great decision in the running game. They seemed to rotate Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Isiah Pacheo on different series. I think this was a good move because you gave each Runningback a chance to get into a rhythm with the O-line. Because of that, both backs seemed to benefit from that, and both seemed more in sync with the offense. Skyy Moore was used more, and I think the Chiefs are going to slowly add him in more and more to keep teams off balance. They used Bryan Cook more at safety, and he seems to be improving every week. Jaylen Watson was given a tough assignment this week. Going against Tom Brady and Mike Evans. But he seemed to hold up well, and the moment didn’t seem too big for him. All the rookies and young players are looking great so far this season.
Take Aways Going into Week Five
I think the Chiefs looked really good on Sunday. The balance they showed on offense makes them so much harder to defend. With that being said, they did leave points on the board with a few miscues on offense. Mahomes, with the interception, seemed to get greedy trying to put the nail in the coffin when Skyy Moore was open for a first down. But overall, they should be able to keep this momentum going into next week.
With the defense, I think they had a good game against Brady, Evans, and Godwin. A little more pressure from the front four would be better. But you are going against some great tackles in Wirfs and Smith. I think they played well, but Bolton and Jones would be the first ones to say they could have played better. So I’m not too concerned about the Defense. It’s just about carrying this momentum week by week, especially with the division rival Raiders In Arrowhead on Monday night.