The Chiefs Lateral Quickness Edge

You don’t find a Barry Sanders underneath every rock. However, the Kansas City Chiefs have been able to identify lateral quickness in players, and as much as team speed sets this team apart, so does lateral quickness agility. Not that the Chiefs have a Barry Sanders on their roster, but they do have enough players who can make others whiff when trying to tackle them, and that’s important.

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There are many names for this:

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• Ankle breaker
• Juke move
• Put them on skates
• Jump cut
• Film Glitch
• Ability to disappear

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While I’ll focus on Chiefs who are skill position players today, a terrific example of lateral quickness having a big impact on player performance is DT Aaron Donald. Yes, he’s tops in the league at hand fighting and gaining leverage, but it’s his ability to get himself loose and penetrating by taking a jab step sideways that allows him to get that leverage against lesser OL… and in Donald’s case, every player he faces is a lesser OL.

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Breaking Down Dante Hall

This is why many scouts and analysts look for players with the ability to “flip their hips,” because if he has that kind of flexibility, he can not only make those kinds of elusive offensive moves, he can defend against them much better. Some might call this “jump-cut” ability, the X-Factor. Speaking of X-Factor, Dante Hall was famous for his slithery, darting, quickness and who could forget his run against the Broncos. Here’s a breakdown of Dante Hall’s return including slow-mo.

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Here, I’ve slowed down the clip after allowing the play to complete. Two things to keep your eyes on while re-watching this video: 1) watch Dante Halls’ hips and how he’s able to shift his weight from one side to the other allowing him to make his moves and free himself, and 2) watch the defenders each time Dante Hall moves in the opposite direction and you’ll see them moving the wrong way, to make a play on him. Hall was amazing in his ability to get free using his shiftiness.

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That capacity to move your hips one way and then another seamlessly, with velocity, is what made Sammy Watkins so appealing to the Chiefs, because he was also fast. Here’s the play Watkins made in the Super Bowl to secure the second drive after the now famous play, “Do we have time to run WASP?”…late in the game bringing the offense into scoring position again, in order to take the lead:

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You’ll notice after the play completes once through, that I’ve slowed the action down so you can focus on Watkins, who flips his hips so well, that the normally solid coverage of CB Richard Sherman is thrown off completely, allowing Sammy to get an inside release. Then, he uses his speed to get up field and Patrick Mahomes lays it gently in the his hands, like he was delivering a newborn baby. Sherman described the Chiefs offense in September last year:

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“It’s all the weapons they have on offense, and then it’s Andy, and Bieniemy, and how creatively they use all those, there, Kelce. There’s so many different weapons, and things you have to [prepare for]. It’s not like pick your poison. It’s just, pick how you’re going to die.”

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A big reason for that kind of “death” by offense, has to do with the players GM Brett Veach is bringing into the offense, and Andy Reid’s play calling of course. Veach picked up a gem who may end up replacing Sammy Watkins in WR Cornell Powell. Compare the play above to this one Powell makes vs. CB Shaun Wade of Ohio St. (who was drafted in the 5th round by the Ravens this year).

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Once again, I’ve slowed the tape down after the play is complete. You’ll notice I’ve highlighted the turf kicking up after Powell makes his second move on the play, which is as good as his first move. Wade makes the mistake of turning the wrong way after Powell’s initial fake. It’s reminiscent of the Sammy Watkins move and he could have beaten Wade deep here, because his first fake allowed him an inside release, but Powell runs a “J” route allowing him to come back for the ball. I’ve stopped the clip there to show the one mistake Powell makes in allowing the ball to get into his body. If he’d caught the ball with his hands extended he’d have been able to get into the completion of his route even sooner. Then again, he did score on this play so it’s hard to complain about the result.

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One personality trait every good WR in the NFL has is a belief in themselves, and Cornell Powell appears to have that as well:

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In the national discussion for the best wide receiver in the NFL last year, Tyreek Hill’s name kept coming up. Teams have been attempting to draft the next Tyreek Hill for years now, just as much as teams are trying to find the next Patrick Mahomes at QB. Here’s a clip of Hill making a move on the Raiders CB, Amik Robertson, last year:

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Hill’s fakes are so quick and seamless, you almost don’t notice them. I used the same pattern here by playing the whole clip at normal speed, then slowing it down. If you watch this clip a second time, notice that Raiders CB Robertson falls down. That’s not an uncommon occurrence when defending Hill, but since Patrick Mahomes has been focusing on going deep, he hasn’t often taken the shorter route his WRs were running underneath. That was part of the problem in Super Bowl LV. If Andy Reid had made the right adjustments, he would have had a second half game plan that called for Mahomes to dink and dunk his way to victory. However, we do know Mahomes has said, he’s focusing on becoming “more efficient” this offseason, and I can only imagine that means taking what the defense gives him… and that’s shorter gains through the air… but that’s a separate subject.

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One of the reasons Mecole Hardman isn’t the feared WR that Hill is, has to do with his inability to put a good fake on a CB. If the defense on Hardman plays him to go deep, they’ve pretty much won that battle. Hardman was drafted at a time when the return of Tyreek Hill was in question and may have been seen as a possible replacement for Hill’s speed. While he deserves to be taken seriously when going deep, he hasn’t proven he can make the lateral moves that Sammy Watkins made… when he was on the field.

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Next, take a look at Matt Waldman’s RSP NFL Lens, a focus he did on Byron Pringle three years ago when he first came out of Kansas St. and was signed as a UDFA. This is in a preseason game vs. the Packers prior to the time Pringle hurt his hamstring.

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Pringle does a good job here of getting deep, as Waldman points out, but as in the other clips, I’ve slowed down the second look so you can see the excellent jab step move he makes at the line of scrimmage to get free. Pringle could compete for the #2 WR job behind Tyreek Hill this season.

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While Sammy Watkins had a better college career, both he and Cornell Powell played for Clemson. The similarity doesn’t stop there. Take a look at the measurables from Watkins Combine and Powell’s Pro Day:

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The biggest difference between the two so far is… Watkins was the 4th overall pick in 2014, while Powell was taken at #181 in this years draft. Powell as a WR who is improving and he may one day soon be able to offer similar skills that Watkins provided, when healthy. Including the ability to “make a move” and get open underneath.

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While Bleymaier is fortunate to have a loaded WR room to work with, so many of whom have the jump cut skills necessary to be successful in the NFL, the RB room also has Clyde Edwards-Helaire. Here’s the first TD CEH scored as a Chief:

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It’s that jab step that made the Texans #20, Justin Reid, fall down and miss him completely. David Bell has pointed out to me that the influence of Kelechi Osemele early last season gave the Chiefs OL an added drive-blocking dimension. With the players the Chiefs have brought in this offseason to play on the OL, they should be able to blast open plenty of holes for the Chiefs RBs to run through and CEH should be able to take greater advantage of his cutting ability.

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When you hear about Andy Reid putting his players in the best position to succeed, part of what’s being said there is, he takes advantage of their ability to make a play in space. You can be sure the Chiefs coaching staff is aware of this skill, as well as the scouting staff. I look forward to a lot more misses this season.

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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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