Kansas City recorded its second win of the 2023-2024 NFL season in a blowout
It’s not often that “getting right” is the theme of a team following a victory, but that was exactly the position the Kansas City Chiefs were in following their week two victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars.
In their week two game, the Chiefs’ alarming lack of offensive success was thoroughly illustrated, setting the stage for the team to return to normalcy in a week three matchup against the Chicago Bears.
The Bears are undoubtedly one of, if not the very worst teams in the entire NFL. From a performance standpoint on the field to the coaching, all the way up to the team building, it has been a complete disaster in Chicago over the past year. They finished with a 3-14 record in 2022, which was the worst in the NFL and resulted in them earning the first overall pick in the 2023 draft, which they later traded to the Carolina Panthers. Three weeks into 2023, and the Bears are one of the four teams that have started the season winless. They are also second to last in offensive and defensive EPA per play, the only team to rank bottom two on both sides of the field.
It’s very easy to see why this was set up to be a bounce-back game where the Chiefs could iron out their struggles, and they did exactly that, winning 41-10 in blowout fashion.
Aside from strictly being the superior team, what led the Chiefs to victory, and what are some concerns that still remain?
The Offensive Redemption
The Chiefs’ offense, which had struggled entering Sunday’s game, made a statement in all phases against the weak Bears defense.
The Chiefs had a total offensive EPA per play of 0.226 in week three, which ranked third in the league, only behind the Miami Dolphins and the Arizona Cardinals. The Chiefs were successful in the air and on the ground, moving the ball effortlessly following the first drive.
Spreading the wealth was key for the Chiefs offense. They were able to get eleven pass catchers involved within the offense regardless of whether it was receivers, running backs or tight ends. The running back room also accounted for four total touchdowns.
Having success while emptying the depth chart is very important, as it gives the Chiefs ways to experiment with different personnel and play calls that can be useful in more important games later in the season.
The Defensive Consistency
Although it was against the second-worst offense in the league, the Chiefs’ defense yet again had an impressive performance.
The biggest bright spot for Kansas City defensively this season has been cornerback Trent McDuffie. McDuffie has been phenomenal in both pass coverage and against the run, as he has the highest grade among all cornerbacks in the NFL on Pro Football Focus at 90.6 on the season.
McDuffie was targeted twice and only allowed one reception for six yards, with four tallied tackles.
The Officiating of Jawaan Taylor
One of the main concerns about the Chiefs to this point is how right tackle Jawaan Taylor gets off the line of scrimmage quicker than any other lineman, and how he aligns himself differently than most tackles in the NFL.
It first became prevalent during the week one broadcast of the Chiefs versus Lions game, where NBC’s Cris Collinsworth made mention of Taylor’s alignment. He even said “Jawaan Taylor playing slot receiver,” in reference to his unique alignment.
Following week one, in response to the outrage behind Taylor’s alignment, the NFL stated that it was going to start cracking down on illegal play from its tackles moving forward.
This indirectly put a target on Taylor’s back. Both Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes have expressed their dissatisfaction with the way Taylor has been officiated, claiming that he has lined up no deeper than any other lineman in the league.
It will be interesting to monitor how Taylor is officiated, and whether he goes back to playing the way he always has or is forced to adjust his game.
Looking Forward to Week Four
The Chiefs are set to travel to East Rutherford, New Jersey to take on the New York Jets for Sunday Night Football.
The Jets are 1-2, with two straight losses following their overtime win over the Buffalo Bills in week one. The Chiefs offense will once again be challenged. The Jets have a talented defense that features Sauce Gardner and Quinnen Williams, two All-Pros from 2022. However, the one team with an offense worse than the Bears is the Jets, and that is directly related to the play of their quarterback Zach Wilson.
Wilson is considered to be one of the biggest draft busts selected in recent history. Selected second overall by the Jets in the 2021 draft, Wilson has been historically bad by every measurement since entering the league. Among the 35 quarterbacks who have logged over 500 plays since the start of the 2021 season, Wilson ranks dead last in EPA per play with a mark of -0.129. The Chiefs’ defense, which has been red hot, should be able to fluster Wilson with relative ease, allowing for a likely win.
Edited by Chase Gemes | cgemes@themaneater.com
Copy Edited by Sterling Sewell | ssewell@themaneater.com Edited by Sophie Rentschler | srentschler@themaneater.com
