While it wasn't due to a missed field goal or extra point, the special teams unit for the Kansas City Chiefs played a direct role in their loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Monday Night Football.
There is no need to go through a detailed recap of what transpired after Kansas City scored the go-ahead touchdown with less than two minutes remaining in regulation. At this stage of the week, Chiefs fans know Harrison Butker's kickoff attempt went out of bounds, allowing Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars' offense to begin what proved to be the game-winning drive on Kansas City's 40-yard line.
Just days after giving Butker a pass for a missed 56-yard field goal in the Chiefs' win over the Baltimore Ravens, the veteran kicker made another mistake, which was far more costly. One that special teams coordinator Dave Toub was left to answer for on Thursday when he met with the media.
Dave Toub Continues to Miss the Mark Regarding Chiefs' ST Issues
"His field goals are better. I think he's on an uptrend with his field goals," Toub stated, via Charles Goldman of A to Z Sports. "On the kickoffs, we had a special return on... he went a little too far right, honestly."
Toub went on to note how Kansas City was trying to pin Jacksonville within its 30-yard line on that "special return" the Chiefs were running. For a group that is on the field as little as Toub's special teams unit is during a game, there is far less room for error than there would be for the offense or defense. This does not suggest that either of those units is on an especially long leash of their own; they obviously aren't, despite spending much more time on the field any given Sunday.
This is why Toub is being criticized. The fact that he is so willing to make excuses for a veteran kicker like Butker not being able to keep the ball in bounds, while also outwardly complimenting a unit that was called for several penalties, is enough to leave any reasonable Chiefs fan feeling frustrated.
"The penalties hurt us. Upsetting. But there were a lot of good things, though, at the same time," Toub stated on Thursday when asked for his thoughts on the performance of his special teams unit, via A to Z Sports.
Highlighting the positives, as slim as they may be, as a means of detracting attention away from the negatives may work when things are going well, as they have for Kansas City the last several years. The Chiefs can't continue to rely on the greatest hits, though, when things are clearly not working in the moment. This is especially true when the team's next opportunity to prove they've righted the ship on special teams comes against the Super Bowl-contending Detroit Lions.
That is what Toub attempted to do on Thursday, and while I may be wrong, it seems highly unlikely this word salad convinces Chiefs fans that there isn't a special teams issue that he needs to address sooner rather than later.