Thunder and Lightning: From the Air and Ground – There are times you look at the game and you know that there are meaningful events that are occurring. I wrote on Friday about the Chiefs ground game and ToP domination in the game against the Bills. What we saw was a game of opportunistic feeding and that is how I would characterize the Chiefs attack on both offense and defense. Keep in mind that the Chiefs defense held their opponent to 17 points or less. That is a huge accomplishment in today’s high-scoring NFL. Plus, the ground game was a sight to see.
Facing the Broncos
This game at “Mile-High” will have its necessities and one of those is endurance. This is always the case playing in Denver due the altitude. What I know about this is that the Chiefs have a very deep roster and players that can shuffle in and out to counter the effect of playing at high altitudes. Please don’t get me wrong when I say this: the Chiefs will win this game. The Broncos are coming off a big win on the road against a very good Patriot team and that was a big boost for them. The went from 1-3 to a record of 2-3 and there is nothing that they would like better than to add a notch to the handle of their pistols. They want to make a statement that their team is on the rise, but it’s up to Andy Reid, Eric Bieniemy and DC Steve Spagnuolo to counter whatever it is that the Broncos have planned.
Vic Fangio will surely have reviewed the Chiefs and Bill’s game and will have seen the success of the ground game. They are familiar with our WR corp. They know who Travis Kelce is and what he can do. As they pursue their game strategy, the Broncos coaching staff are now well aware of the “Clyde” and what the Chiefs offensive line accomplished even when missing starters from the mix and Patrick Mahomes will get to Colorado being well schooled about the Bronco defense. It will be a good division match-up as well. Keep in mind that Patrick is also aware of what happened last year when he was injured in the Bronco game.
A Two-player Bomber Combo
Enter Le’Veon Bell! We won’t know what, when, or how Bell will be used in his first outing as a Chief. I can assure you of this, the team is full of pleasant anticipation as Lev joins up in tandem with CEH. This week, in his presser, Eric Bieniemy had this to say with high positives for both RB’s:
“…Because now you’ve got a little bit of thunder and lightning going on with those two. But the thing is that he’s (speaking of Bell) going to help Edwards-Helaire to become a better football player — due to all the knowledge that he has and the wisdom that he can pass down to him.”
Thunder and Lightning? Gotta love it! Personally? I think the signing was a great step forward for the Chiefs offense. We know that as soon as he agreed to sign with the Chiefs, Bell had then contacted CEH (or it could the other way around) before the ink was on paper. We know that Clyde was full of praise for Bell and being able to go to school from a, likely to be HoF RB. This will be a great 1-2 punch both in the running game and as receivers for Patrick Mahomes.
Bieniemy went on to explain his view of adding Bell to the arsenal:
“He gives us an additional piece to the puzzle… I mean, he’s a big back. His productivity over the years speaks for itself, because we’ve lined up and played him when he had those days (with the Steelers)…. We know what he can do. We know what he brings to the table. He’s a great receiver out of the backfield. He can block. He can pick up blitzes in protection, and on top of that, as a ball carrier, at one point in time, he was one of the elite backs in the league.”
Is there any doubt that the OC for the Chiefs views the addition of Le’Veon Bell as a high positive?
What are the Exposures?
The WR Injury to Sammy Watkins: you first must address the fact that Chiefs “Y” WR Sammy Watkins will not be on the field Sunday. It doesn’t matter. The Chiefs do not use the usual sets with any receiver. Reid’s offense uses various players for the X or Y. It’s probably far better to define him as a totally capable #1 WR who is most often used as the possession wideout. Sammy brings a tremendous value as a possession receiver to the Chiefs full complement of wide-outs. Should this be a worry? Not for me, because behind Sammy is Demarcus Robinson and Mecole Hardman and Byron Pringle, and of course there’s the constant deep threat from Ty Hill. I am good to go with the speed and ability of the WR’s, sans Watkins for a game.
The Offensive Line: Having witnessed a top performance by the Chiefs offensive line, the Broncos will present a different view of the front end of their game. It will be tougher to get blocking assignments done and to get to the second level. Still, The Chiefs RB’s should hit the ground with fervor. I think the Chiefs will master the ground game and the offense will grind out yards, perhaps as much as 150 or 175 yards on the ground. Pass Protection is a must but the Broncos lost the threat that they hoped to field with Von Miller, who’s out for the season. Wherever they line up Bradley Chubb, he’ll have to be countered and the back in the backfield must ensure that at least a chip block is successful against anyone getting through.
I saw a lot of advantage with OL players on the field last week: Nick Allegretti looks to play guard with a streak of viciousness. Daniel Kilgore, who came to the Chiefs from the Dolphins, struck his blocking with fervor and was also very good in pass protection. Mike Remmers did a good job returning to his native OT play replacing Mitchell Schwartz who left the Bills game early. Austin Reiter, who was held out, and Andrew Wylie are available. I see no reason to think that the OL is going to take two steps backwards.
The Linebackers: The Linebacking crew is a disappointment. Last week Spagnuolo held rookie Willie Gay out of all snaps, except for 3. Anthony Hitchens, Damien Wilson and Ben Niemann are not getting better as the season progresses. The one thing I guess I can say is they haven’t cost the Chiefs a win… as a unit. They have, however, not made a significant positive impact.
LB Emmanuel Smith: The Chiefs brought former Vanderbilt LB Emmanuel Smith back to the roster. Smith had looked pretty good before being injured in preseason last year and spent the season on the injury list. He enters his second year with the Chiefs. Watching him in pre-season in 2019, I saw glimpses of good play by Smith. Let’s see what happens from here.
The Secondary — Enough is enough! The Chiefs secondary has been the subject of critique long enough. Even without L’Jarius Sneed (whom I hope is getting ready to return 4 Sunday’s from now or possibly before)… the secondary has held things together as the defense overall has performed as a strong unit. Bashaud Breeland’s return strengthened the CB Group and they will now have had another week working together and working to the plan set up by the coaching staff. What must happen is that the front 7 contain Drew Lock and pressure him into making mistakes and errant passes — enough to prevent long sustained drives that achieve 6 points. The secondary must take away the obvious when Lock is pressured. It’s that simple: this Chiefs DB group is up to the challenge. Keep in mind that against a strong Bill’s team the defense held the score to 17 points. In fact, the Chiefs have only allowed more than 20 points once: to the Las Vegas Raiders, while twice holding opponents to 17 or less (17 and 10 points respectively).
Harrison Butker’s Extra Point Faux Pas, Faux Pas: Harrison Butker has missed a couple of extra points of late. I am sure it’s a concern and it has shown on his face after the misses. On the other hand, that’s the nature of being the Place Kicker — one day carried on the shoulders of teammates, the next week the fans, pundits and observers begin grumbling. The Chiefs kicking game is ‘very okay’. Misses occur and since the moved the point of the kick back to the 15 yard line, it is no longer a cinch — a 25 yard FG is also missed in the games frequently. We do not know if there was a problem with the snap from Long Snapper James Winchester, and we likewise do not know if the placeholder who is also the team’s punter, Tommy Townsend, has muffed the placing of the ball. I am sticking with Butker and Co. A great hue and cry must rise up and support our place-kicker. Sheesh.
Injuries? Still Missing Players: I am most concerned about the first two that Pete Sweeney lists in his tweet.
What Do the Broncos Bring to the Table?
Injury Report — One thing that is going on in Bronco-land is that players are returning from injury. However, they have had key players missing plus Gordon’s incident which caused him to miss practice.
| Player | Position | Injury | Thurs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jeremiah Attaochu | OLB | Quadricep | DNP |
| Melvin Gordon III | RB | Not injury-related/illness | DNP |
| KJ Hamler | WR | Hamstring | LP |
| Noah Fant | TE | Ankle | FP |
Note the following: by the end of the week, Mike Purcell(NT) got to FP Status and Noah Fant as well. Other players not listed above were Dalton Risner(OG) DNP, Diontae Spencer, WR DNP.
Team Momentum and Playing at Home: No NFL team can fail to appreciate that they have won two games in a row, including the 2nd on the road in a comeback win over the much ballyhooed Patriots. I am sure that gives the team a big incentive and a flame for upsetting the Chiefs. The Broncos are still a team which is building and it has several young players who are component players of the team. One thing that has caused them problems is that they suffer from self-inflicted wounds, even in their victories.
What the team will need to do is build on the aura of winning football and try to carry it to the extreme against their division rival, Kansas City. To win, the young players must play nearly perfect football and not make unforced errors. They face a team that has beaten them on the road and at home. The Chiefs arrive at Mile High riding the crest of having won a Super Bowl, and competed the prior year for the AFC Crown and won it. On top of that, Andy Reid’s teams have beaten the the Broncos for nine straight wins. The question is, will the Broncos be able to fend off an aerial game of Pat Mahomes and a ground game of CEH, with an added wrinkle — RB Le’Veon Bell?
Reviewing of the Bills game last week, the Broncos will know that parlaying play by LB’s off the LoS won’t work, and they are familiar with the Chiefs ability to fend off the blitz — and when it is about to pounce successfully, QB Patrick Mahomes foils such a strategy consistently. A blitz also opens targets down field. Will the Broncos adopt the strategy of Vegas or look to the blitz to try and stymie the Chiefs aerial game? The Broncos will try to depend on their defense to keep the game as low scoring as possible and hope that their QB, Lee’s Summit native, Drew Lock, and his receivers can make hay against what they may regard as a weakened Chiefs secondary. The offense must capitalize and the defense must force turnovers in order to win this game.
Here’s a forecast of the Chiefs snow game Game Plan from Rogue Analytics with Ryan Tracy and Chris Clark.
Mile High Weather Forecast
Game Prediction?
One thing we do know: the Broncos can’t win without sustained drives or settling for Field Goals. Nor can they go toe to toe in a high scoring game. The Chiefs defense is strong enough to contain Drew Lock and defend both the pass and run. Stopping the Broncos drives and forcing punts and at the minimum, kick FG’s… and that will defeat the Broncos on Sunday.
Chiefs 33, Broncos 20
David Bell – ArrowheadOne
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