The second week for the Kansas City Chiefs is now behind us and, if you can believe it, the future is even more bleak than the past. But first things first, as I always do, I will talk about what the Chiefs did right and what they could have done better.
What the Chiefs did right
- Surprisingly enough, there are some things the Chiefs did right. In the first quarter alone, the Chiefs nearly had 100 yards rushing. Then Jamaal Charles was carted off the field with an injury, and that was the beginning of the end (I'll have more on Charles in a different post). The Chiefs finished the day with 151 yards rushing on 29 carries (5.2 ypc).
- Speaking of the running game, I liked how Le'Ron McClain was used. He showed he is a decent runner, considering just how big of a guy he is. He finished with 15 yards on 4 carries. He also did a nice job in the full back position, making many decent blocks for the backs behind him.
- The defense in the first half looked decent. Even though they gave up 20 points in the first half, they forced several 3 and outs and even intercepted Stafford (which McGraw then fumbled right back) on the first possession.
- I don't know if the playcalling really improved that much, but we were more congruent on offense in the first half. On the first possession, we drove down and kicked a field goal, missed a field goal a possession later, and then started turning the ball over like it's part of the game. Which leads me to the next part.
What the Chiefs could have done better
- Where did our defense go? Nevermind the offense right now, the defense has given up 89 points in the last two games. Has the loss of Mike Vrabel, Ron Edwards and Shaun Smith (oh yeah, and Eric Berry) this offseason really made the Chiefs the worst defense in the NFL? Well, apparently. Playmakers from last year haven't done much of anything in the first two games of this season: Derrick Johnson isn't wowing anybody, Kendrick Lewis hasn't made any plays, Glenn Dorsey had two personal fouls called against him. When's the defense going to figure it out?
- I am a fan of Dexter McCluster. I want to say that right now before I absolutely rip into him. McCluster is being overused in our offense. I know that Charles was hurt and McCluster was probably filling in for the plays that would have involved him, but McCluster should not be used the way that he is. He is most effective in screen situations and draw plays, if you run those plays occassionally. When our entire offense is based around short passes, screens, and draws, then McCluster isn't fooling anybody. And for the second straight week, he fumbled on our side of the field.
- As bad as our defense giving up 89 points in two games, our offense scoring 10 points in two games isn't good either. And the easiest position to identify fault is the quarterback position. Cassel was 15 of 22 (68%) for 133 yards, 3 interceptions, a fumble, and 2 sacks. As Nick Wright pointed out on Twitter, Cassel is on pace to throw for 2,106 yards, 8 TD's and 32 INT's. Cassel isn't costing us games, (it would be hard to score 48 points with any team) but if he continues to put up awful numbers all season with no upside (don't see the +20 TD/INT ratio happening this season) then it might be time to look somewhere else.
- For the second straight week we got blown out, but not to be hidden is that Ryan Succop has missed field goal tries in both those games. No facet of our team is performing as it did last season, which could be telling signs that this season will be one that Chiefs fans will never want to remember.
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