Kansas City Chiefs: Scouting How Beat The Pittsburgh Steelers In Week 2

Run Defense In The Nickel

In the early parts of the game against Los Angeles, the Chiefs defense looked much improved when it came to stopping the run. Chargers running back Melvin Gordon was unable to make plays between the tackles as Kansas City plugged the running lanes. This, in turn, forced Los Angeles to get creative with jet sweeps to establish some kind of running attack.

Pittsburgh’s game is controlling the line of scrimmage with the running game. While Antonio Brown is a scary weapon that everyone in the league knows, it’s the running game that the offense thrives off of. LeVeon Bell saw more touches last season than any other offensive player and it wasn’t even close.

While James Connor is not LeVeon Bell, the offense will still try and pound the ball with their second year running back. Most of the offense will go through that run game. If Kansas City can shut down the run from Pittsburgh while in their nickel defense, it could bost well for the Chiefs.

Last week against Cleveland, Pittsburgh came out with two tight end sets for a significant portion of the game. Forcing the Browns into their base defense allowed them to take advantage. If the Chiefs can stop the run with their nickel defense, keeping extra secondary help on the field for Antonio Brown, I could see the defense having a good game against a powerful offense.