Kansas City Chiefs: Good, Bad, Ugly vs Chargers in week 1 of 2018
BAD: RUN GAME
This was a very different season opener for the run game than a season ago when Kareem Hunt introduced himself to the country by destroying the Patriots. Hunt didn’t fare all that well on Sunday, totaling 16 carries for just 49 yards. He was targeted once, but didn’t haul in any receptions.
Hunt had monster games against the Chargers last year, so the Bolts definitely had to have made it a priority to stop him. It wasn’t all on Hunt though, as the run game as a whole didn’t make much of an impact either. The unit had 27 carries for 106 yards and no touchdowns. Not exactly the numbers the Chiefs were hoping for on Sunday.
While the Chiefs have a new quarterback that’s more eager to air it out, the run game is still important. Hunt is talented and will get back on track, but this just wasn’t a good outing for any of the running backs.
Spencer Ware had three carries for 32 yards, Mahomes took the ball five times for 21 yards, and Tyreek Hill even had two carries, but only for four yards. Mahomes probably won’t be rushing as much as Alex Smith did, but he did show he’s not afraid to take off.
Hopefully next week will see the running game get going a little more because this offense can’t be one-dimensional.