Lions at Chiefs, Opening Day: OPEN THREAD

Laddie Morse

The day has finally, finally arrived. The Detroit Lions are visiting the Kansas City Chiefs to start off the new year for the NFL and it just so happens to coincide with the Chiefs beginning the defense of their Lombardi crown. No team has won back-to-back Lombardi Trophies in 20 years and if the Chiefs accomplish this feat, they’ll be the 9th team to do so in NFL history. Those teams include:

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While no team has won back-to-back championships in 20 years, the Kansas City Chiefs have as good a chance as any team who is listed here. One aspect of note about each of those teams is… they all had great quarterbacks:

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In fact, each and of those QBs are Hall of Fame QBs, except for Tom Brady, and we all know he will be in the Hall one day. We also know that Patrick Lavon Mahomes II will be one day as well ,as he brings his own brand of greatness to the game.

The Detroit Lions

Victoria Hernandez wrote a piece this week for USAToday.com called: “Detroit Lions at Kansas City Chiefs: Predictions, picks and odds for NFL Week 1 game” in which she said:

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“The Lions barely missed the playoffs with a 9-8 finish last year, but return with confidence under quarterback Jared Goff. He was named to his third Pro Bowl after tossing 4,438 yards and 29 touchdowns. Aidan Hutchinson is entering his second season after boosting Detroit’s defense with 9.5 sacks as a rookie, but has been battling an ankle injury this month.”

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The biggest question mark in this game… to me… is whether or not the Lions can defend at all against the Chiefs vaunted offense. If Aidan Hutchinson can’t go, that will be a bigger loss for them than any of the Chiefs current players with woes. While the Lions defensive backfield has been improved this offseason, I certainly doubt the Chiefs will throw the ball less in this game. The Chiefs running game will obviously be relied upon a great deal. Detroit was ranked 29th against the run in 2022 so it stands to reason that Isiah Pacheco will get an increased workload.

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While the Chiefs allowed JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman to walk in Free Agency, they have 7 wide receivers who can each take over a game in: MVS (Marquez Valdes-Scantling), Skyy Moore, Kadarius Toney, Richie James, Justin Watson, rookie Rashee Rice, and fan favorite, Justyn Ross.

While some may use the previous paragraph to argue against the Chiefs WRs, I find their lack of experience no problem whatsoever.

The Kansas City Chiefs

The Chiefs begin with great coaching. Not only Andy Reid, but everyone who coaches for K.C. has a great resume.

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That’s just scratching the surface as K.C. has many fine coaches and training staff. People like Rick Burkholder (vice-president of Sports Medicine and Performance), and Tom Melvin (Tight Ends Coach), not to mention all the other fine coaches Reid has worked with and hired over the years.

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Jennifer Piacenti wrote a piece for si.com in which she said:

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“… Kansas City not only gets the home-field advantage but also the advantage of having the reigning NFL and Super Bowl MVP, Patrick Mahomes, under-center. It’s easy to see why they are favored by a wide margin. They remain the favorites to win the Super Bowl again this season at +600 odds.”

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While I agree with Ms. Piacenti that the Chiefs will win the next Super Bowl, I’m nervous that the first game of the year will be much tougher than everyone thinks it will be. The Lions won’t be a push over and the Chiefs will have to stay on top of their best game — especially without Chris Jones and potentially Travis Kelce — if they hope to come out on top.

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If the Chiefs can come out defensively and focus on stopping the run, they should end up in the winner’s circle. However, if this game turns into a shootout, the team scoring last will likely come out on top.

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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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