Breaking Down The Chiefs - A different story

Two weeks ago the Chiefs were 9-0 heading into Denver with high hopes. It’s been a rough 10 days for those same Chiefs fans that were on top of the world. They have lost their past two games and a defense that was claimed as the best in the league has struggled.

Their defense has only one sack in the past three games. The first eight games of the season they were averaging 4.5 sacks per game. The struggles of getting to the quarterback are only to continue. They lost their sack leader, Justin Houston, for at least this weekend with a dislocated elbow.

The first half of the season the Chiefs defense allowed only 272 yards per game but the last three games, 462 yards per game. Up until week 11 they had not allowed more than 17 points in a game, again, the past two games have reflected differently, allowing 68 points - 27 to Denver and 41 to San Diego.

Turnovers have been a huge part of the success of this Kansas City team. They led the league in turnover differential, but since their bye week it’s been a struggle. The first nine games of the season the Chiefs only turned the ball over eight total times, an average of .9 per game. Since the bye week they have turned the ball over three total times, an average of 1.5 per game. Forcing turnovers has been big for them as well. The first nine games of the season they forced 23 turnovers, an average of 2.5 per game. Since the bye week they have only forced one, an average of .5 per game.

The rushing defense has been a little suspect all season for the Chiefs so success on the ground is no surprise. The defense thrived on stopping the pass but the past two games has been a different story. The first eight games of the season the Chiefs allowed an average of 208 yards per game through the air with no quarterback passing for more than 300 yards in a single game. The past two games combined they have allowed 710 passing yards an average of 355 yards per game with both quarterbacks throwing for over 300 yards.

The only bright side for this Chiefs team since the bye week is that the offense proved that it could score a lot of points....CONTINUE READING