The Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers add another epic chapter to their rivalry with yet another primetime thriller. The Kansas City Chiefs started off a little slow as they did in week two. But they didn’t force anything they stayed calm and in the second half, they ran the ball a lot more with great efficiency. The defense held the Chargers to just seven points in the second half and the defensive line played an amazing game. The Kansas City Chiefs found a great balance in the second half and when they started to get hot they look unstoppable. But let’s go through what went right for the Kansas City Chiefs to get a win in yet another primetime thriller.
Offensive Efficiency:
In the first half, the Chiefs didn’t want to run the ball at all which was shocking because in the first half we ran the ball for 6 yards per carry. and we saw the consequences of that when Mahomes was dropping back to pass. The Chargers’ edge players could just pass rush on our tackles because we would not consistently run the ball in the first half. This all changed in the second half we found so much balance and in turn that helped Mahomes and the offensive line have time to go through his reads and make the right play and we saw the offense hit a whole different gear with 1:41 left in the game. When the Offense gets in that killer mentality mode I don’t think anyone can stop them.
Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL and it’s not close. In the first half, Mahomes and the offense looked very sloppy and just out of sync. The Chargers did a great job in the first half by creating pressure they didn’t have a bunch of sack numbers early but they were always around his legs and he couldn’t step into some of his throws. In the second half, they found a lot more balance and Mahomes started dealing and showed why he is the best player in the NFL he is down his two top receivers going into the game and lost his third early on in the game, Mahomes was finding Moore on a few big plays and of course, Mahomes kept finding Kelce for big play after big play. He wasn’t forcing anything and trusted his players to get open and make plays.
I’ve mentioned the running game a few times because when the Chiefs look their best on offense they are able to run the ball very effectively. Pacheco has looked better and better as the weeks go by he looks more confident when he runs and more decisive with his cuts. He does have a few rookie mistakes like on the kick return when he should have let it go out of bounds but I think he more than made up for that in the running game. He was the first Kansas City Chiefs running back with 100 yards since week four of last season. there were multiple moments in the fourth quarter where the Chargers linebackers were frozen from play action because the Chiefs were running the ball so effectively and allowed more plays to open up downfield.
Kansas City Chiefs Defense:
Similar to the Kansas City Chiefs offense the defense started out pretty slow and we were giving up pretty big chunk plays. This has been a theme throughout much of the season where the defense will start the games slow and make occasional stops. Then in the second half, the coaching staff will make the adjustments and then generally they will lock it down. and make life much more difficult for opposing offenses. The Chiefs in the second half started playing more man defense on the outside and got a lot more pressure with the front seven, WHich in the second half created a lot more problems for the Chargers’ offensive line and Herbert.
Chris Jones needs to firmly be in the defensive player of the year conversation. He is so absolutely dominant week in and week out. He creates so many problems along the offensive line because you need to bring so much attention wherever he lines up it creates more favorable matchups for everyone else along the line and any potential blitzers. and this team had the fourth most sacks in the NFL which can get overshadowed by how good the Kansas City Chiefs offense is but we need to start giving Jones the respect he deserves with how dominant he is this season along with his improved run defense.
Willie Gay and Nick Bolton are the most underrated linebacker duo in the NFL. We saw both of them make big plays all night. We saw a great blitz presence from Gay where he went by untouched and sacked Herbert. Wille Gay is just an energizer bunny on defense you always see him running around making plays and hyping everybody up to keep everyone engaged and keep the energy high. Nick Bolton played great in the second half and he had the game-sealing interception and is the field general on the defensive side and helps get everyone in place and he was great in the second half against the run which made the Chargers be one dimensional so they are easier to defend.
Personnel Choices:
The Kansas City Chiefs really flexed their depth all over the field with Juju and Hardman out, and Tony leaving early with a hamstring the offense stumbled for a little when they were trying to figure out their new pieces but then they started to get hot later in the game as they all got on the same page and were able to execute extremely well when we needed to but this was a great game to get experience for the young players because we will need them to make plays at some point late in the season and to get them to experience in this primetime environment was great for all of these young players.
Skyy Moore played great in the second half he made a few big catches and had an amazing route against one of the best safeties in the NFL to get open and get the first down. He also looked like a veteran in the punt return game he wasn’t forcing any returns. He was running great routes and he showed how good his hands are. If he just showed up and delivers when his number is called that would be a perfect first season for him in a Chiefs uniform. He is the sixth option on this offense and he has shown a tremendous amount of growth so far in his short NFL career.
Jody Fortson and Noah Grey played great as tight ends two and three for this team. Jody had an incredible catch up the sideline which was also a great throw from Mahomes it was a great catch and Fortson has been used less this season but I think you will see his usage go up as the season goes on. Noah Grey might be the most improved player based on his performance last year. He has continued to show his growth in the offense and Mahomes showed so much faith in him whenever Kelce is off the field he constantly shows up and catches whatever is thrown at him they round out a great tight end room for the Chiefs that should only get better as the season continues.
Going Forward:
The Kansas City Chiefs need to make sure they don’t let off the gas after this division rivalry game. looking forward we play the Rams on the 27th. The Rams have had a tough season so far but they have so much talent on their roster, especially on defense. The Chiefs need to come out and play their A game early on. If the Chiefs come out and play down to their opponent and let them hang around this could be a much closer game than it should be. The Chiefs need to focus on this week and play their best game possible because of that talent on defense, this game is at home and Arrowhead should be going crazy the Chiefs need to use that energy and carry the momentum of Sunday nights game and take it one week at a time.
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