Kansas City Chiefs: The Patriots Biggest Threat

Special Teams:

Tyreek Hill – PR

I have already talked about Kansas City Chiefs rookie Tyreek Hill once in this list, but he’s dangerous enough to be mentioned twice. As tough to stop on offense as Hill is, he might be even more dangerous as a return man. If the Chiefs rookie is given even just a little space on a punt return, there is a good chance that he is taking the ball to the house.

I talked about how demoralizing a defensive score can be, and the same is true of a special teams score. When a team scores on a kick or punt return, it throws their opponent off. A team must shift its focus from defense to offense without the benefit of looking over what worked or didn’t work from the last drive. That will affect playcalling.

The Patriots are a very good punt coverage team, allowing just five yards per return with a season long of just 18 yards. However, Tyreek Hill has managed to put up big returns against some very good coverage units this year. His quick acceleration means he will only need a little bit of space to work with, and the Chiefs have given him a green light.