Last week's game did not go according to plan for the Kansas City Chiefs. However, a gritty win for KC has changed the public's perception of the Chiefs DNA this season. Trevor Lawrence, the Price Who Was Promised, one of football's next great quarterbacks, could not score a touchdown against the Kansas City Chiefs defense last week. Lawrence completed only 53% of his passes and, scientifically speaking, stunk in the red zone. His struggles can be read as proof of the continued emergence of an elite defense in Kansas City.
After a muffed punt by Richie James gave Lawrence's offense the ball 17 yards away from the end zone, the Chiefs D only allowed a Jags field goal. In the third quarter, KC"s defense once again ruined one of Jacksonville's golden opportunities. The Jags got to KC's one-yard-line with a full set of down to work with. They ended that drive with the third and final Jacksonville field goal of the game.
At the conclusion of an ugly contest that included nine punts and seven fumbles, KC claimed victory despite scoring only 17 points. This studly Chiefs defense rose to the occasion and accomplished things we haven't seen in Chiefs Kingdom for years. Last season's KC defense never held an opponent to single digits and never had a two-game stretch averaging 15 points or fewer points allowed per game. That happened in the first two games of this season, and there was no Chris Jones in Week 1. With only 48% of the defensive snaps, Jones had a tackle-for-loss, two QB hits and a sack and a half against Jacksonville. That's a Hall of Fame-level talent returning to an already-effective defense, which, shockingly, makes Kansas City's defense the best part of the team at this point in the season.
The Chiefs have only scored 37 points, but this offense's future still looks bright. Coincidentally, the team visiting Arrowhead today has also scored 37 points so far. Does that mean Chiefs-Bears will be a tense, low-scoring affair like Chiefs-Jags? Probably not! After playing in 64% of snaps for KC's offense last week, Travis Kelce should see more action today as he returns to his typical, insanely high standard of play. That is bad news for a Chicago defense who has struggled this season against offenses with less pedigree.
Chicago has allowed 28 and 27 points to the Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, respectively. Actually, I'm not sure what's the chicken and what's the egg here; did Chicago's defense stink so much that it made Baker Mayfield and Jordan Love look unnaturally good, or are those guys just underrated this season? After all, Love posted a QBR 12.9 points higher against the Falcons in Week 1 than his QBR against Chicago last week. Only he and Kirk Cousins have thrown for six touchdowns through two games, and only Love has done so without throwing any picks. So, maybe Love is on his way to being really good, and maybe the Bears defense could look effective as long as they aren't facing a QB that is really good. Even if this turns out to be the case, the Chiefs have a QB that surpassed "really good" a long time ago.
Patrick Mahomes has a QBR of 65.1 through two games this season - disappointing by his lofty standards, but still good for 9th in the league. Justin Fields' QBR currently sits at 22.5, which is the league's second-worst. Pair that with Chicago's lack of a defensive coordinator today, and I expect KC to make this the first comfortable viewing experience of the season for Chiefs fans. I'm predicting a 37-17 beatdown as KC gets back to looking like the dynasty they truly are.
No comments:
Post a Comment