Coming off Week 1’s 27-21 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, the Kansas City Chiefs need to put it all together as they host the world champion Philadelphia Eagles in a rematch of Super Bowl LIX on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Can they do it?
1. Can the Chiefs’ pass rush bounce back?
The most concerning aspect of the Chiefs’ loss to the Chargers was their inability to generate pressure with four defensive linemen, which allowed Los Angeles quarterback Justin Herbert to stand comfortably in the pocket and throw downfield strikes that stressed
Kansas City’s coverage.
This was against the Chargers’ offensive line, which didn’t project to be very good — especially after left tackle Rashawn Slater was injured. So this concern will be magnified on Sunday against the Eagles, when the team will face one of the league’s best offensive lines.
There is some good news. The Chiefs won’t be playing in Brazil. While the field at Arena Corinthians seemed better, it still isn’t a normal NFL field or environment; playing on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium should give the pass rush more juice. And it feels inevitable that defensive tackle Chris Jones will bounce back. He played a bad game on Friday, but he doesn’t often have bad performances in back-to-back games. If he is at his best, that will trickle down to other players.
But the Philadelphia offense does bear some similarities to the Los Angeles offense. Both are based on the running game and explosive downfield passing. The Eagles’ ground game is much better than that of the Chargers, but the passing games are similar. While Philadelphia quarterback Jalen Hurts attacks with more downfield Go routes, Herbert tends to operate over the middle. Still, both offenses are trying to complete long passes. The difference is that the Eagles consistently block it up well enough for Hurts to get the ball downfield.
On Sunday, it will be crucial for the Chiefs to affect the pocket. Otherwise, they’ll risk giving up more explosive plays.
2. Can the Chiefs play man coverage well enough to blitz?
As an extension to the pass rush, one of the game’s deciding factors will be what Kansas City can do while blitzing. Even if the pass rush improves, the Chiefs aren’t going to dominate the Eagles’ offensive line — because no team does that. To generate consistent pressure, Kansas City will have to bring some heat.
In last Friday’s game, we saw both the benefits and risks of blitzing. When the Chiefs blitzed more during the second half, they were able to get off the field more often — but while doing so, they also gave up some explosive passing plays. When blitzing, defenses must depend on downfield man coverage. On Friday night, the Chargers could find favorable matchups against Chamarri Conner in the slot, Kristian Fulton outside or safeties Jaden Hicks and Bryan Cook in one-on-one coverage.
This will be a bigger problem against the Eagles’ wide receiver corps. Hurts is among the best when throwing downfield, while wideouts Devonta Smith and A.J. Brown are elite at separating from man coverage. When Kansas City blitzes, at least one of those receivers will be in a one-on-one matchup. Can the Chiefs’ secondary hold up against them? Will Kansas City’s blitz get home often enough to affect the timing of these downfield plays?
Trent McDuffie is a good one-on-one matchup for Smith. So the Chiefs might be able to have McDuffie shadow him while using a “1-double” — two defenders in man coverage — against Brown. That could be an effective counter to Philadelphia’s passing game.
While Kansas City will also need to be careful about protecting rushing lanes from quarterback scrambles, the main focus will be on preventing Smith and Brown from dominating downfield. If the Chiefs can do that, they can keep the game close. Otherwise, we’re likely to see the defense struggle again.
3. Can the Chiefs attack the Eagles’ second outside cornerback?
In the Eagles’ Week 1 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys, one of their weaknesses was at outside cornerback. Darius Slay’s offseason departure left a hole that Philadelphia has been trying to fill. Veteran cornerback Adoree’ Jackson was up against Mitchell until he was evaluated for a concussion, when former Las Vegas Raiders corner Jakorian Bennett took over.
Dallas targeted these two cornerbacks as often as possible, matching them up with Quinyon Mitchell and CeeDee Lamb downfield. The Cowboys feasted against both of them.
I would love to see Kansas City attack this weakness — but how could it be done? With the team’s injuries at wide receiver, it lacks a wideout who can dominate one-on-one on the perimeter. Whom can the Chiefs trust in that outside matchup? Finding the right answer will probably determine how much they can move the ball.
