With the Kansas City Chiefs in the middle of a mini-bye week, let’s catch with what’s going on around the block.
It was a real pleasure watching the New Orleans Saints beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday evening. Ever since the Chiefs lost Super Bowl LV to the Bucs, much has been made of there being a road maps for how to beat the Chiefs. Now, with the Saints having beaten them in four straight games, there’s also a road map for how to beat the Buccaneers.
Anytime one team is able to hold another team to zero points, you must pay attention. Here’s what former NFL head coach Rex Ryan had to say about the game:
“This is a horrendous matchup… How do they do it? They do it by getting internal pressure. You got to get him [Tom Brady} off the spot. You’ve got to get him uncomfortable, everybody knows this. Easier said than done. Cam Jordan isolated the Guard. Okay… but they match up on the back end. Nobody matches up with [Rob] Gronkowski — oh yes they do — they go with [Malcolm] Jenkins in there, who’s got corner skills and he’s big — a huge Safety, that’s rare. [Marshon] Lattimore on the outside… they match up with them. Here’s the other thing they do, they’re “multiple” in their man coverage. Most teams just play cover-one. They play cover-one. They’ll play one-rat, they’ll play two-man, one-robber, they’ll play raider-coverage, which is an outside-in man coverage leverage. They change their leverage points on you. That’s what you gotta do against Brady. [Overall…] It’s a bad matchup.
It should be noted that the Bucs lost their top three receivers, but that doesn’t explain the Saints 4-game winning streak advantage over them. Also, the Bucs couldn’t do anything even when they had those guys in the lineup. Brady was sacked four times, but hit many more times than that.
Can the Chiefs pull off such a performance? If their defense is at full strength, then yes, absolutely.
I’m not in favor of seeing CB Bashaud Breeland come back to the Chiefs. Both Ryan Tracy and Daniel Harms at RGR Football would welcome such a move and, Harms said on Monday that he wouldn’t be surprised to see such a move made by noon on Tuesday.
Many have speculated that Breeland was not re-signed in K.C. over the offseason because of cap reasons, bu if GM Brett Veach really wants a guy, he finds a way to fit him under the cap. Period. Consequently, there had to be other reasons why Veach, Reid, and the DB coaches didn’t speak up on his behalf… back hen. Now that Breeland has obviously had conflicts with his team, it makes re-signing him all the more unlikely.
Now, are the Chiefs in real need of a veteran presence in he CB locker room? If you asked me two months ago, I’d have said yes. However, a lo has changed in the past two months and he overall performance of he corners has been far above average. So, I’d say, let’s pass. Would Breeland be able to assimilate quickly? Yes, bu ha doesn’t account for his ability to shake up a locker room. For ha reason, I’d pass.
I mostly agree with Lyle Graversen who wrote a great piece yesterday called, “Five keys for the KC Chiefs to keep the AFC’s top seed” in which he lists:
1. Set Up Patrick Mahomes For Success – His [Mahomes’] play has been a little up and down this season thanks to a mix of bad luck, bad situations, and some mistakes on his own part. So how can the Chiefs make sure they get the superstar version of Mahomes down the stretch to help them secure the top seed? Simply put, they need to set him up for success.
2. Get the ball to Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce – While Mahomes will always be the biggest name on the team, the fact is the Chiefs have a trio of Hall of Fame-caliber players.
3. Utilize The Running Backs – While the passing attack really took off with Hill and Kelce late in the win over the Chargers… [RBs] CEH and Williams combined for just 14 carries for 44 yards and 2 receptions for 18 yards. That’s just not enough. The Chiefs have to find a way to get those two more involved in keeping drives going.
4. Keep Nick Bolton On The Field – against the Chargers, Bolton played 99% of the defensive snaps and had arguably the best game of his career. Bolton is a fantastic tackler, has great vision, understands the game, and plays with the physical intensity that the defense needs.
5. Keep Everyone Healthy – The injury side of things can be flukey, so on that front, I guess we all just cross our fingers and hope for the best.
Based upon wha Lyle Graversen has written, the biggest road block for K.C. in he last three games is… themselves. Coaches must make sure their scheme is consistent. he firs 15 plays designed by Andy Reid at the beginning of each games has produced solid results. he question then becomes: why isn’t that carrying over to the rest of the game? If Reid can make sure his play calling is focused during the 2nd and 3rd quarters, he 4th quarter should reveal an insurmountably handsome lead.
Linebackers coach Matt House has a possible offer coming to become their Defensive Coordinator coming from LSU now that Brian Kelly is taking over as Head Coach. LSU Tigers Wire says:
“On the defensive side of the ball, Kelly has set his target – per sources — on an up-and-coming NFL assistant coach Matt House, the Kansas City Chiefs’ linebackers coach who spent almost two decades coaching at the collegiate level before he exited the University of Kentucky three years ago for an opportunity with the Chiefs.“
While the Chiefs have had a strong coaching core since Andy Reid came to town, they’ve also had a stable “next-man-up” set of coaches replacing those who’ve moved on.
This coming Sunday a 3:25 CDT, the Chiefs host he Steelers in wha could turn to be Ben Roethlisberger’s swan song performance in Arrowhead Stadium. Outside of he Chiefs main rivals, like he Raiders, the Steelers have served as a years thorn in the side of the Chiefs and myself. It’s rare that I ever cheer them on. Even though I dislike the Titans, I found myself rooting for them over he Raiders last weekend and was rewarded when the Titans beat Pittsburgh 19-to-13.
Roethlisberger’s off field exploits has me even more “not a fan.” However, Roethlisberger does have a number of NFL records:
Ben Roethlisberger is one of those player that I’ll be glad when they’ve retired. However, if you want one last look a him, his last game in Arrowhead is likely to be this Sunday afternoon.
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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