It’s been an interesting season so far—with the early bye week, it’s not quite a mid-season review, but it’s a great time to check in on some of the trends we’ve seen over the first four weeks.
Your 4-0 Kansas City Chiefs are playing good defense and running the ball like it’s 1997. They have an OPOY candidate (running back Kenneth Walker) and an MVP (quarterback Patrick Mahomes). The rookies are playing well, and the coaching staff changes seem to have helped.
On the other hand, injuries, penalties,
and pass-rush and pass-protection issues have been frustrating, and a couple of their wins were closer than they should be.
Here are a few Chiefs who seem to be trending up or down.
BULLS
Running back Kenneth Walker III: The offseason narrative: Kansas City made only one significant offensive addition, and he’s a running back. The reality: it’s changed everything. Walker is leading the league in nearly every statistical category. He’s already racked up big plays of 60 and 76 yards, and has been on the field for three-fourths of the offensive snaps so far. The coaching staff has committed to a new-old-style offense with plenty of under-center handoffs, screens, and play-action passes. They found the perfect guy to execute on the field, and it’s paying off. The only question left is whether they can do this in January and February.
Cornerbacks Mansoor Delane and Nohl Williams: If the trend continues, we may have to talk about these guys every week. They’ve both shown the skill set and makeup to be an elite tandem in this league. Barring injury, my only concern is that the coaching staff tries moving one of them inside because of shortcomings there (see Bears below). Otherwise, these two are making Andy Reid, Steve Spagnuolo, and Brett Veach look very smart for letting those other guys walk.
Offensive lineman Kahlil Benson: Going back to the premise of this series, we’re looking for those who are trending in one way or another, even if they aren’t the top-of-the-roster guys. Just think back to the expectations we had for a player, and how they have over (or under) performed compared to those expectations— or compared to their contract/draft slot.
Given that context, it seems logical that we should be extremely bullish on Kahlil Benson. The guy wasn’t even considered a priority UDFA; he had to earn his roster spot via tryout and a strong offseason. Even then, there was lots of panic and doubt when he struggled in a couple of preseason games. He earned the starting nod and has more than held his own. Yes, the coaching staff is giving him more help than they normally allow a tackle, but by any measure Benson has performed well in the role he was asked to fill. As the season wears on, they’ll need him— whether he’s the starting left tackle, starting at another spot, or as depth—he is part of the solution.
Others trending in the right direction this week: Emmet Johnson, George Karlaftis, Travis Kelce, Drue Tranquill, Kristian Fulton, Matt Araiza, Xavier Nwankpa, Felix Anudike-Uzomah
BEARS
Defensive tackle Chris Jones: It’s weird putting Chris on this list. He’s an elite player in this league, and will belong in the Hall of Fame. He’s made a fantastic living terrorizing quarterbacks from the interior of the defensive line. He’s been unblockable in key situations. But this season, he’s clearly fighting through injury and simply hasn’t been as disruptive as we’re used to. Jones doesn’t have a single sack yet this season, despite playing primarily in pass-rushing situations. Part of the issue could be his usage—the team has aligned him outside on most snaps. Chris Jones can do that—occasionally. But his bread and butter is destroying guards and double-teams on the inside. Maybe they’re trying to save him some wear and tear for later in the season?
The entire Slot/Nickel Cornerback position group: It seemed obvious the Chiefs wanted to address this position coming into 2026, and they did, throwing a bunch of options out there. They drafted Jadon Canaday, signed Kader Kohu, brought L’Jarius Sneed back, and retained Chris Roland-Wallace and (gulp) Chamarri Conner. Sneed has been the guy thus far, playing 76% of the team’s defensive snaps at the position. The results have been predictably mixed— Sneed has been involved in some significant plays, including the forced-and-recovered fumble against the Dolphins. But teams have found lots of success with quick passes against Sneed. It’s one of those things that can wreck a pass defense— when QBs have a quick/easy option to complete a pass on one guy, it neutralizes a good pass rush.
Fullback Khyiris Tonga: For a minute there, it looked like the Chiefs could dominate on third-and-fourth-and-1, but forward progress seems to have stalled over the last two games. Using defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga at fullback was a fun changeup, but teams seem to have completely caught on. Hopefully, Andy Reid was just setting up some future looks by handing the ball to Tonga a couple of times. They need to move the sticks better in these situations, and using an actual fullback may be part of the answer.
Others trending in the wrong direction this week: Jack Cochrane, Rashee Rice, Kingsley Suamataia, Mike Caliendo
VALUE (SLEEPER) PICKS:
Defensive lineman Omarr Norman-Lott: ONL may be the forgotten man on this defensive front, but he may be close to returning and reminding folks why they missed him. A quick, stout interior defensive lineman who can rotate in on the pass rush, Norman-Lott can absolutely help.
Left Tackle Josh Simmons: The fickle nature of NFL fans, media, social media, and other commentators is insane. Josh Simmons was the left tackle that we’ve always wanted in Kansas City. But then he missed the first four games with a back injury, and sentiment around Simmons plummeted—even faster than sentiment around the Chargers. Well, Simmons is back at practice after the bye week, and I’m sure many who have been sleeping on him will jump back on the bandwagon once he’s in the lineup. From what we know, he didn’t stop caring, and he didn’t forget how to play football. There’s a non-zero chance we’ll forget the Simmons criticism by the end of the postseason.
Linebacker Jeffrey Bassa: It feels like an annual tradition with these Chiefs: acquire an athletic linebacker, bury him on the depth chart behind some one-dimensional coaches’ favorites. Then, we all complain that Spagnuolo needs a guy like that on the field. Why aren’t they playing this guy? Is this another case of a guy who “doesn’t understand the playbook?” If so, could the playbook be the real problem? Bassa appears to be that guy this season. Yes, it’s early, but (as mentioned above) Chiefs opponents have been picking on defenders with quick passes over the middle. Bassa is only a few games into his rookie season, but it’s time to give him a shot. He can be a playmaker— unless there’s something we don’t understand (there often is).
