Kansas City Chiefs: Defense may be the best in AFC West
By Chris Taylor
The general consensus for potential struggles of the Kansas City Chiefs is on the defensive side of the ball. Let’s compare the defense to that of AFC West rivals.
Sticking with the recent trend of being upbeat and positive, a look into the defenses of the AFC West gives some reassurance for the success of the Kansas City Chiefs.
All the hype is on the offense, of course. New quarterback Patrick Mahomes, new receiver Sammy Watkins, and a plethora of playmakers across the board. The concern after the offseason was all on Bob Sutton and the Kansas City Chiefs defense.
The departures of Marcus Peters, Derrick Johnson, and Tamba Hali left a bad taste in fan’s mouths. The added absences of Bennie Logan and Ron Parker didn’t help the bitter taste.
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Little by little, Brett Veach started filling in the blank spaces, adding personnel to absolve the void. At one point it seemed questionable whether or not the Chiefs would be able to overcome the losses. Now that they are well into training camp, the defense is taking shape, and it looks good.
The draft was kind to Kansas City, who was without a first round pick from moving up last year to pick Mahomes. Breeland Speaks is Tamba Hali reincarnated with a higher ceiling. Derrick Nnadi is as good as advertised when it comes to stopping the run. Dorian O’Daniel should make the squad as a package specialist. Armani Watts will be a starter by at the most, week four. Tremon Smith has had a phenomenal training camp so far, possibly adding depth to the quarterback spot.
Veach added Kendall Fuller with the Alex Smith trade, brought in Xavier Williams, Anthony Hitchens, and David Amerson to fill the void as well. Voila, the Chiefs have a defense that should be better than last year’s. Let’s see how they stack up against their West rivals.
The metric used here is not a proven system. We take the total tackles and sacks of each line so far, in comparison we find out where the talent and experience is. This offers a unique way of judging how each group will perform. We do the same with the linebackers and defensive backs of each AFC West team.