A Pattern of Success

After the Broncos' grin-inducing defeat last Sunday, your very own Kansas City Chiefs now stand alone as the only undefeated team in the NFL. With another tough victory against the Texans, the Chiefs found another way to win an important game (while still winning in the exact same way? I'll get that to make sense later in the article.) After playing through seven weeks and overcoming numerous legitimate teams, the nation is starting to take notice. This is no anomaly, no matter how nail-bitingly close some of those battles may have been.

This team is finding new ways to win, sorta. What I mean is, every game is different, and they've taken different paths to victory in different circumstances against different types of teams. But, they win with the same formula every game. A tremendous weight is put on a great defense to keep the momentum in their favor with constant pressure and multiple crucial stops, and they've proven their ability to do just that. Special teams tilts the field in KC's favor, and the offense finds a way to put up points, if only when they absolutely need them.

The Chiefs are becoming predictable, in a good way. Mistakes are expected to be limited, the defense is expected to stand strong time after time, and the offense is expected to do just enough with Jamaal and its other pieces to barely outscore the opposition. Most importantly, the Chiefs are now expected to win tough games against competitive teams. These expectations come from a pattern of success, and the stats back up their methods in every important facet of that pattern.

KC is one of only five teams with 10 or more INTs, and they lead the league in defensive points scored and points allowed per game. KC's sack total, 35, is 10 more than anyone in the NFL so far this season. The offense isn't as statistically impressive, as anyone paying attention could safely assume. However, they do lead the league in the all-important turnover ratio, and it's not even close. Three teams are tied for 2^nd place at +7, two are at +6 and five at +5. The Chiefs' ratio currently sits at +11.

Many fans hold their breath now, waiting for the regression to the mean, and I don't blame them. Jamaal may fumble less than most backs with that running style, but he probably still fumbles more than the average running back. Charles averages 4 fumbles in every 16 games played. Only four running backs lost that many fumbles in 2012, and only one did so in 2011. Alex Smith can be trusted to keep the picks at a minimum, but multiple errant passes have bounced off opposing players' numbers this year. Some of those drops will inevitably turn into interceptions, so keep holding your breath. Those drops are just one of many factors keeping the Chiefs unbeaten that are out of KC's control.

Some critics will point to all of Houston's injuries and tout them as the reasons Kansas City won last Sunday. While it's hard to argue with Schaub, Foster, Cushing and others not influencing the game, their replacements weren't slouches. Case Keenum looked way more NFL-ready than virtually anyone would have expected, Tate is a respectable, sturdy back, and the defense still had enough firepower to hold Kansas City to two touchdowns and a field goal. No one can say how the game would have played out with the aforementioned starters in their normal roles. They can only say that Houston put a competitive team out there at game time, and the Chiefs beat them.

A lot of things have gone the Chiefs' way, but that shouldn't take away anything from their 7-0 start. When the decisive moment came in every game this year, whether on offense, defense or special teams, this team stepped up. The gritty, often-ugly fashion in which they've won should simultaneously act as a reminder that the team is imperfect and a statement that they know how to do whatever it takes to get a win.

Whether or not fans in Chiefs Kingdom will admit it, this will to win is going to be legitimately challenged again this Sunday. Each level of competition poses a different psychological challenge, and losing to the lowly Browns is just poetic enough to be feasible. I keep telling myself that this team will lose as soon as they expect winning to be automatic. After a successful but emotional start to the season, this Browns game are as close to that psychological hurdle as they've come so far.

I'll guess that this mental weariness makes the game close in the first half, yet again, but that Andy Reid and the rest of the coaching staff know this issue well enough to prepare the team for it. Reid has been around for a long time, and this potential trap game won't sneak up on him or the Chiefs this Sunday. The first half may be aggravating, but I'm predicting that another win should be comfortably within grasp by the beginning of the 4^th quarter. Official prediction: the Chiefs go 8-0 to start the season, as I do my damnedest to get the Broncos matchup off my mind long enough to prepare for the upcoming Bills game.

Doug LaCerte is a freelance journalist and a writer for Rant Sports. Argue with him on Twitter @DLaC67, leave him a disparaging comment on Facebook, and add him to your circle on Google.