Your Kansas City Chiefs are now 5-1 after getting thoroughly dominated by the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night. This game reminded us of a Super Bowl — but not in a good way.
It felt like one of the Super Bowls where the Chiefs lost: the offensive line was in over their depth, the receivers weren’t getting open or catching the football, the defense was almost good, but the pass rush couldn’t quite get to the quarterback— and the coverage often wasn’t good enough to protect against lightning-quick
passes.
Seattle had a superior game plan and overcame injuries to multiple running backs. They have one star player that teams need to game plan for, and he had a monster game. The Chiefs have an MVP at running back and at quarterback, but they couldn’t put them in position to succeed. Head coach Andy Reid and staff just didn’t have answers. The offense never reached the red zone, the defense didn’t record a sack, and the Chiefs were outgained 410-213.
It’s a game we won’t want to remember, but a few Chiefs stood out against the Seahawks, more bad than good.
3 Winners
Cornerback Nohl Williams: It’s often not a great sign when a cornerback has double-digit tackles, but on Sunday Nohl Williams was everywhere. In addition to his 10 tackles, he also had a pass defended and a tackle for loss. But the play of the day for the Chiefs was the endzone interception that Nohl returned 65 yards. Perhaps it was fitting that the offense squandered the opportunity, but that doesn’t take away from another great performance from the Chiefs’ outside corners.
Cornerback Mansoor Delane: In what will undoubtedly be a learning experience, the Chiefs top pick went up against the league’s best wide receiver, Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Spagnuolo’s defense was unable to stop JSN, but Mansoor Delane proved that he was more than up for the challenge. The receiver still won with some incredible adjustments, but that’s not a knock on Delane. We’ve often seen that a perfect pass/catch can beat perfect coverage, thus is the life of a NFL corner. He ended with two passes broken up.
Running back/kick returner Emmett Johnson: In a limited role, the rookie running back had a couple of catches and a downfield block for a big Mahomes scramble. He also looked promising on kick returns, including a 41-yarder. There weren’t a ton of positives for the Chiefs on Sunday night, so we’ll celebrate the glimpses of hope from the likes of Emmett Johnson.
6 Losers
Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed: He was mercilessly targeted by the Seahawks offense until the Chiefs mercifully put Kristian Fulton in. It was a monster day for JSN, and another rough one for L’Jarius. The slot corner position is as important as any on the defense— especially against teams with a dominant receiver that they can move inside to take advantage of matchups.
Kicker Harrison Butker: Against contenders, every point counts— and Harrison Butker left six on the field. There was another chance to make it a one-score game going into halftime, ending in another miss. Sure, it was from 58… but still. After hitting his next kick of 50 yards, Butker would miss a 45-yarder. At what point does Andy Reid stop sending him out there?
Running back Kenneth Walker’s revenge game: The narrative around Walker’s return to Seattle didn’t age well. The Seahawks were the ones who got “revenge” with a swarming defense that would not let Walker find daylight, especially on the outside. The NFL’s (former) leading rusher averaged only 2.6 yards per carry and was held to 57 total yards on the night. It felt like he didn’t stand a chance—Ken’s old team was ready for him.
Wide receiver Xavier Worthy: On a night where Seattle’s defense looked that fast– Worthy should have been part of the solution. Instead, he was blanketed downfield by a safety (albeit a great one) and had a ball go through his hands in a fourth-quarter crosser. The Chiefs were short on receivers, and they could have used a big game from #1– instead he turned six targets into 3 catches, 11 yards.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes: You could see the quarterback’s frustration and for good reason– there just wasn’t anything that worked well. Without much help from receivers or a run game, Mahomes threw a costly interception and missed on a number of passes that he’d typically complete. One of the most impressive things Mahomes did all evening was recovering his own fumble. Though it was a tremendous effort by the quarterback coming out from the bottom of the pile.
Chiefs offensive line: Due to injuries and weirdness, Andy Reid had to roll out his backup (and backup backup) offensive tackles. The result was a predictably tough night against the league’s best defensive unit. Byron Murphy II, Derick Hall, and Leonard Williams looked dominant against the Chiefs front five. There were the typical problems including a low snap and a couple of holding penalties. What was both new and painfully familiar was how helpless the offense was—largely because the Chiefs couldn’t win up front.
Note: Applying the labels “losers” is not intended to be a judgment on the talent or character of any of these individuals. It’s just a simple way to grade their job performance in a single game. No disrespect is intended.
