Laddie Morse
The Kansas City Chiefs secondary is a hidden strength on a team with an offense that ranks as one of the best in the NFL. Last year, even though the Chiefs lost WR Tyreek Hill, Patrick Mahomes was able to thrown for over 5,000 yards – again – and TE Travis Kelce was able to log his 7th straight season with over 1,000 receiving yards. In the meantime, the Chiefs defense was much improved in 2022 over their 2021 version.
While the defensive line was registering the second most sacks during the regular season, the secondary was only the 23rd best at producing INTs. So, how do I know this secondary is a good one? Because lineups.com has them ranked as the 5th best secondary in the league for the coming year. Here’s their ranking of the top five secondaries in the league for 2023:
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Here’s what lineups.com had to say about the Chiefs secondary:
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While the Chiefs’ passing offense was the driving force behind their Super Bowl win, the pass defense was also highly impressive. Kansas City finished the season ranked second in PFF’s team coverage grades despite starting two rookies – Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson – at the outside corner spots. The Chiefs ranked first in team coverage grade per PFF with McDuffie on the field and 27th without him.
With Juan Thornhill leaving in free agency, second-round pick Bryan Cook takes over a starting safety spot on the heels of his own impressive rookie season. Add fourth-round rookie Joshua Williams into the mix, and the Chiefs might have found four long-term starters in the secondary in one draft class – that’s superb work from general manager Brett Veach.
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Looking at the other teams ranked ahead of the Chiefs, I can see where K.C. could end up even higher if they improve their INT rate. If the DL is able to get more pressure on opposing QBs, as I expect they will, then the secondary could easily increase their eleven (11) INTs from 2022.
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I can understand why Miami is listed first on this list. With Xavien Howard already on board, then adding Jalen Ramsey, it give the Dolphins perhaps the best pair of Corners the league has seen in years. David Carr at NFL.com ranks Jalen Ramsey as the 2nd best CB in the league and Xavien Howard at #3. Only JC Jackson of the Chargers is ranked higher, at #1.
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Bryan Stewart of ArrowheadPride wrote a piece called: “How 2 Chiefs cornerbacks are helping transform Steve Spagnuolo’s defense” in which hs says this about the Chiefs two best corners:
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“Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo loves having versatile players who can play different roles throughout his unit. In the latter half of the 2022 season — for the first time in his four years in Kansas City — he had two cornerbacks who could do about anything asked of them: veteran L’Jarius Sneed and second-year player Trent McDuffie. While both are effective as outside cornerbacks, they can also perform at a high level in the slot.”
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That “versatility” is like gold in the bank for Steve Spagnuolo. Any DB who can move around and play multiple positions gives Spags the chance to mix up his coverages and re-design from play to play, his cloak of invisibility. That way, opposing QBs will never know what scheme he’s going to call. That’s a huge advantage for Spags and gives the Chiefs defense a super advantage.
A hamstring injury in the first game of the season against the Arizona Cardinals last year kept McDuffie out of the first six games. He’s expected to make huge upswing in his performance this season but he played well in the 11 games he saw action in during the 2022 season. In his second year, he should take a major jump in performance and that will give Spags another Sneed-type player who can move around and is still good in coverage no matter where he lines up. Last year, upon McDuffie’s return, he allowed a 36.9 QB rating against the 49ers in 45 snaps, for any WR he was covering.
With two CBs playing at the top of their game and leading the Chiefs secondary towards the top of the NFL rankings, gives the other coverage DBs who line up for the Chiefs the chance to develop and grow, and gain important experience they can see for themselves.
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L’Jarius Sneed was taken 138th overall in the 2020 draft. After his rookie season, DraftWire.com did a re-draft and ranked him at the 9th best player overall. Some say his second season was a disappointment but I don’t see it that way.
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Last year, his third in the NFL, was even better (see above) with 3.5 sacks and 3 INTs. Now, he’s facing a contract year and while many are focused on extending his contract, he is focused on the season at hand. Sneed said recently,
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“We got there once, We can get there
again. You never get complacent.”
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Sneed goes on to say:
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“Since I first came in the door, Spags has trusted me. Spags knows he can put me anywhere on that field and I’m going to give it my best. Whatever position I’m in, I’m going to give it my best. Spags knows he’s going to get that out of me.”
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Just the next month after the Super Bowl victory, L’Jarius Sneed gave his mother a car:
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The top quality men the Chiefs are in the habit of drafting and signing, is incredible. That appears to begin with their defensive backs. Also, in one of the interview listed above, Sneed credits his coaches in K.C. with knowing and sharing so much with him.
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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