What separates the Chiefs from the two
teams fighting to call themselves champions today? Lots of stuff. It
may actually be simpler to count the things we have in common, but
what is perhaps the biggest difference? The defense in KC isn't elite
yet, but it certainly showed signs of improvement and clutch holding
power. This is a good enough defense right now to be competitive if
matched with even an average offense. So the offense is the problem- but,
not all of it. KC ranked 5th league-wide in total rushing
yards this year, with Jamaal listed in the top five for season
rushing yards, average yards per carry, average yards per game and
total yards from scrimmage. Clearly, Jamaal has what it takes to be a
winner and push the Chiefs toward the playoffs. #25 can only let this
team down by getting injured.
So, the defense has hope and the
running game is great- obviously not KC's biggest flaws. That narrows
it down to the passing game. Neither team in this year's Super Bowl
had incredible passing stats in the regular season; Baltimore and San
Fran ranked 15th and 23rd in total passing
yards, respectively. The Chiefs rank dead last, though. Anyone who
watched the games each Sunday can clearly see that Kansas City needs
to evolve on the offensive side of the ball. Compared to watching a
game with at least one competent passing attack, the Chiefs' Sunday viewing experience felt downright juvenile. The rest of the league
enlisted field commanders with rifle arms to bomb the opposition.
Meanwhile, the Chiefs were playing around with Nerf guns and Super
Soakers. While everyone rode around the neighborhood on their shiny,
new ten-speeds, KC was pedaling away on one of those plastic,
tricolor Playskool bikes.
Let me get to the point before my
metaphors get any weirder. The QB crippled the Chiefs' chances to
succeed last year. The last team to rank last in passing yards and
still make the playoffs was the Ravens in '03. That Baltimore squad
still ranked 8th in overall offense, and its legendary
defense featured several future-Hall of Famers like Ed Reed and the
man of the hour, Ray Lewis. In the nine seasons that followed, teams
that ranked last in passing yards averaged 4.4 wins per year and
never recorded a winning season. Recent changes for the Chiefs will
help them to avoid this fate.
Kansas City started the season by
limiting their offense in order to cater to a limited QB. Whoever
starts at quarterback next year will be an upgrade, but he'll need to
deal with the struggles of learning a brand new offense. Because of
this, and also because of the QB position's cerebral nature, this
year's choice of a quarterbacks coach is crucial to future success.
Andy Reid has yet again gone with a former assistant from Philly to
bolster the coaching staff- shocking, I know. Before we lose
ourselves to the bright lights and high drama of the day, let's
quickly get to know the new Chiefs quarterbacks coach- Matt Nagy.
Nagy's resume is a quick read, but he
brings hands-on QB experience and strong work ethic to his first
quarterbacks coach position. After playing six seasons at QB in the
AFL, Matt quickly started his coaching career by climbing the ranks
in Philly under Andy Reid. After two years as a coaching intern, Nagy
claimed a position as offensive assistant to begin the 2010 season.
The next year, Andy upgraded his position to offensive quality
control coach. I won't pretend to know much more about this guy. I
have no idea what he brings to the table from an X's and O's
standpoint. All that aside, I still really like this hire. Nagy
offers, at the very least, a list of accomplishments based solely on
his hard work and determination. Whoever the next Chiefs quarterback
is, hard work and determination will be exactly what he needs to
succeed. Other factors will influence this QB's chances considerably,
but no other person will have more effect on KC's new big hope than
Matt Nagy.
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