The Kansas City Chiefs opened the season last Friday, and ever since they kicked off in Brazil, they haven’t been able to catch a break. Xavier Worthy went down with a shoulder injury in the opening quarter, and Kansas City lacked explosiveness on offense and effectiveness on defense in a 27-21 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers to begin the year.
The Chiefs had plenty of time to mentally reset on the 13-hour plane ride from São Paulo back to Kansas City. But they barely have a chance to take a breath as they welcome a Philadelphia Eagles team that dominated them in the Super Bowl last February.
Kansas City was hoping they would get some good fortune when Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter was ejected for spitting on Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott in their season opener on Thursday night. But rather than Carter being handed a suspension, the Chiefs' job just got a lot harder when they take the field on Sunday afternoon.
Jalen Carter’s Slap on the Wrist Does Chiefs No Favors Ahead of Super Bowl Rematch
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the NFL is fining Carter $57,222 for spitting on Prescott Thursday night. While the league dropped a hefty fine on Carter, they deemed that he had already served the equivalent of a one-game suspension since he was suspended after the first play of the game.
Carter has chosen not to appeal the decision, and it’s easy to see why. Instead of sitting out a game for his action, the former Pro Bowler gets to go back to work and potentially terrorize Kansas City’s offensive line, which had a hard time protecting QB Patrick Mahomes the last time they saw the Eagles.
The Eagles consistently got pressure on Mahomes during last year’s Super Bowl, pressuring the Chiefs' signal-caller on 40.5% of his 42 dropbacks, according to Pro Football Focus. This was impressive after Mahomes was pressured on 32.1% of his snaps in the 19 games, including two playoff matchups, on the way to the Super Bowl. It was even more impressive considering Philadelphia defensive coordinator Vic Fangio didn’t blitz a single time because of the effectiveness of his defensive line.
It'll be interesting to see how Carter will challenge Kanas City's offensive line.
The Chiefs have enhanced their presence in the trenches by adding first-round pick Josh Simmons, who allowed four pressures on 49 pass-blocking snaps in his NFL debut last week. The rest of the Chiefs’ lineup virtually remains the same, with the only other major change being the offseason trade that sent Joe Thuney to the Chicago Bears.
With Worthy’s status uncertain and the running game non-existent in Week 1 outside of Mahomes’ 57 yards with a rushing touchdown, the Chiefs have enough problems to worry about. But with Carter getting a slap on the wrist, it’s one more thing for Kansas City to be concerned about as they look to avoid their first 0-2 start since 2014.