In a collection of articles printed over the summer time, I coated the ten largest questions dealing with the Kansas Metropolis Chiefs in 2024. We’ve already revisited 5 of them. Now we’ll take a look at the remainder.
As I famous after Week 3, the begin to Anudike-Uzomah’s season wasn’t encouraging. He was barely getting on the sphere — and when he did, he wasn’t producing.
In accordance with Professional Soccer Focus, he’s now recorded 5 pressures, a sack, three quarterback hits, a ten.6% strain fee and an 11.1% win fee over 47 pass-rushing snaps via 5 video games.
These numbers are definitely a step up from Week 3. Within the least two weeks, he’s had 4 pressures in 24 move speeding snaps, which is a 16.7% strain fee. That’s encouraging!
Sadly, this can be a small pattern. Whereas Anudike-Uzomah’s Week 4 numbers towards the Los Angeles Chargers had been spectacular, he bought extra enjoying time as a result of Mike Danna was out — and was up towards two backup tackles. When Danna got here again, Anudike-Uzomah had simply seven pass-rushing snaps out of 11 whole reps.
As we are able to see from his shares of defensive snaps via 5 weeks, the Chiefs merely aren’t giving him a lot to do. Nonetheless, in his major pass-rushing function — a looper working off Chris Jones — he’s been efficient. His closing velocity and adaptability can create late strain towards a shifting pocket.
Whereas I’d prefer to see extra of that, it’s not sufficient. He’s nonetheless younger — and deserves time — however as a first-round choose, he wants to indicate us extra. It’s an extended season; he’ll get extra alternatives. He must take advantage of them.
This has been one of many season’s nice surprises: Kansas Metropolis has had good depth alongside Chris Jones.
Mike Pennel has began all however one among this season’s video games at nostril sort out, the place he’s continued to offer the workforce its greatest play at that place since Derrick Nnadi’s early years — and maybe since Dontari Poe. Even at 33, his brute power and measurement make him an elite run defender. He’s pushed Nnadi right into a backup function.
As I defined in a take a look at his movie, Tershawn Wharton’s manufacturing has additionally been spectacular, with a career-high strain fee of 9.6%. He’s already collected two sacks. With Charles Omenihu out with an damage, I figured Danna or Anudike-Uzomah can be the workforce’s third move rusher — but it surely’s been Wharton by a major margin.
Sadly, the reply to this query is clear: nothing.
Brown suffered a shoulder damage on the opening play of the preseason. He’s anticipated to overlook most (if not all) of the common season. Hopefully, his restoration goes effectively sufficient that this query will grow to be, “How a lot can the Chiefs get out of Hollywood Brown within the postseason?”
This has been one other shock. Up to now, Kansas Metropolis’s working recreation is healthier than in 2022. The workforce is now third in speeding success fee (50.4%) and eighth in anticipated factors added (EPA). In 2022, the Chiefs had been sixth and tenth in these metrics.
Kansas Metropolis nonetheless isn’t getting explosive runs — the workforce has had only one working play for 15 or extra yards — however that’s been troublesome with out starter Isiah Pacheco, who fractured his fibula in Week 2. Whereas Kareem Hunt has been terrific, he now not has the burst to generate large performs — and rookie Carson Steele runs along with his head down; he’s not more likely to discover the speeding lanes that result in game-changing yardage.
As an alternative, the workforce’s success within the working recreation has come from the offensive line’s dominant play. Defenses are tending to play two-high security shells towards the Chiefs — and the road has been pounding the sunshine bins it sees. Heart Creed Humphrey is enjoying nice, proper sort out Jawaan Taylor has been a significantly better run blocker and proper guard Trey Smith is having a profession yr. On the left, sort out Wanya Morris and guard Joe Thuney have been greater than enough.
And whereas Hunt will not be cranking out large positive aspects, his success fee as a rusher (65.9%) helps to maintain the Chiefs out of third-and-long conditions. As lengthy he retains doing that, Kansas Metropolis’s working recreation will proceed to excel.
We don’t but know the reply to this query.
Early within the season, Kelce was not a lot of an element within the offense, with solely eight catches and 69 yards on 12 targets. With the success of the working recreation — and large receiver Rashee Rice taking a excessive quantity of targets — there was no must overuse Kelce, which might assist him recent for the playoffs.
However circumstances have modified. With the accidents to Brown, Pacheco and Rice, Kansas Metropolis has needed to enhance the star tight finish’s utilization — and up to now, he’s appeared nice. Over the past two video games, he’s had 16 catches for 159 yards on 19 targets. If he continued to get 80 yards per recreation via the remainder of the season, he’d end with greater than 1,300 yards. (He’d solely must common 65 yards a recreation to get his eighth 1,000-yard season).
However right here’s the important query: can the 35-year-old tight finish maintain that form of a tempo over the total season — and nonetheless be a major issue within the playoffs?
For this reason I consider the Chiefs want one other receiver. With the working recreation, Mahomes and Kelce, the offense has sufficient. However one other receiver would assist relieve Kelce’s burden, permitting him to show in one other wonderful postseason.
