After recording four sacks in the season-opening defeat of the Denver Broncos, the Kansas City Chiefs have been held sackless in their two subsequent victories, a trend that cannot continue if they hope to keep winning.
In nature, pressure produces diamonds. In the NFL, pressure produces anxious quarterbacks, flustered offensive linemen and conflicted offensive play-callers. If applied consistently enough, pressure also produces an improved chance for the team that does it most effectively to win the game.
The Kansas City Chiefs proved that axiom to be true in Week one of the NFL season as they cruised to an easy 31-10 victory over the Denver Broncos. Denver quarterback Bo Nix was just 17-for-28 in the game for 131 yards as he was pressured on nine of his 32 dropbacks, including a team-best three from George Karlaftis III, with the Chiefs also recording three hurries and three knockdowns. Most importantly, the Chiefs got sacks from Nohl Williams, rookie R Mason Thomas and Felix Anudike-Uzomah, with one team sack thrown in, as they totaled four on the day.
In Week Two, though, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones stayed relatively clean on his 31 dropbacks in the game with the Kansas City defense mustering only seven hurries, one hurry, four knockdowns and zero sacks. As a result, Jones was able to complete 22 of his throws for 210 yards as the Chiefs required overtime to escape with a 33-30 win.
Things were expected to improve on Sunday as Kansas City traveled to face the winless Miami Dolphins, but the going turned out to be tougher than expected in a 24-10 victory. The Chiefs' offense was stop-and-go for most of the game and the defense did come up with a key fourth-down stop midway through the fourth quarter while nursing a 17-10 lead, but the pass rush was again nearly nonexistent.
Dolphins quarterback Malik Willis dropped back to pass 36 times and the Chiefs notched pressure on only nine of those attempts. They did have seven hurries and two knockdowns, but the relatively clean pockets enabled Willis to complete 20 tosses and compile 210 yards.
At least two outlets dedicated to Kansas City coverage have noticed this burgeoning pass-rush trend and suggest the Chiefs would be wise to get it fixed ASAP.
While acknowledging the great play that defensive tackle Chris Jones made in batting a fourth-quarter pass that allowed Karlaftis to intercept it, Rocky Magana of Arrowhead Pride was still troubled by the lack of sacks against the Dolphins.
"This is a topic I feel like we have beaten to death in recent years," the writer began. "The Chiefs can’t get pressure without blitzing. Defensive end George Karlaftis is near the top of the league in pressures but struggles to get home. We need more from the young players we drafted. Defensive tackle Chris Jones looks like his best days could be behind him. And when you add it all up, it makes for a defense that does not rush the passer nearly as well as their investment in picks would suggest. This is the same argument we’ve been having for years now. And the fact we’re still having it, and the Chiefs struggled to get to the quarterback against a team that had allowed nine sacks coming into this game, speaks louder than anything else I could say on this subject."
In his post-game report, Bransen Gibson of Arrowhead Addict, labeled the Chiefs defensive line one of four Kansas City "Losers" in the game, noting, "The Chiefs had zero sacks for the second week in a row, failing to bring Malik Willis down in the backfield even once. The Chiefs couldn’t get home with four or when they blitzed, which is concerning given how big of a weakness the pass rush was last year."
To be fair, Gibson did name Karlaftis a "Winner" for his hustle interception, saying, "I haven’t been able to fault his effort this season, so it was nice to see him get a reward for it."
Now the Chiefs move on to face the equally 3-0 Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday in Sin City (3:25 p.m. CT on CBS). Veteran quarterback Kirk Cousins has been a steadying force for the surprisingly undefeated Raiders. In their three wins, he is a combined 62-for-91 (68.1%) for 661 yards with three touchdown passes in each game. He has thrown three interceptions and taken five sacks.
Overall, though, the Raiders' offensive line has been one of the strongest in the league through three weeks with a 17.5% pressure-rate allowed with only 15 hurries and 11 knockdowns. So, if the Chiefs are to turn their pass-rush fortunes around on Sunday, they'll need to do it against a team that has provided an adequately safe pocket for Cousins so far this season.
