3 Chiefs on Thin Ice After Catastrophic Loss to Broncos in Week 8

The Chiefs' loss to the Broncos last Sunday was an unmitigated disaster.

It was a sloppy game across the board, with a whopping five turnovers on offense and numerous defensive penalties that let Denver manufacture long drives.

Tons of players (and coaches) deserve blame, but three Chiefs in particular stand out. Let's look at three Chiefs on thin ice as the organization turns its attention to a Week 9 matchup in Germany with the Dolphins.

3 Chiefs on Thin Ice After Catastrophic Loss to Broncos

1. Skyy Moore

I like Skyy, I really do. He seems like a good guy by all accounts and I hate that he's such a frequent subject of ire from Chiefs Kingdom.

That being said, he has no business being on the field at this point. He's somehow surpassed Clyde Edwards-Helaire in many eyes as Brett Veach's worst draft pick.

In failing to catch a perfect Patrick Mahomes pass in the end zone on fourth down late in the game, Moore has unfortunately sealed his fate in the public eye.

Moore was expected to take a big step forward in his second year, and I even thought he'd lead the receivers in yards. Uh, about that...

Through seven games, Moore has 14 catches on 27 targets for 168 yards and a TD. He's struggled to create separation and to be frank, I can't remember a single time he's made a contested catch.

Despite his struggles, the second-year receiver still gets over 50% of the snaps weekly. It's nearly impossible to justify his snap count at this point, as he's been an anchor weighing down the offense at every opportunity.

I hope the best for Moore and my fingers are crossed he turns things around. However, he has no place on the field for a team competing for the No. 1 seed in the AFC.

He's not the only player under fire, though, and this next page covers a lot of ground.

2. The Entire Special Teams Unit

I couldn't choose just one player to sum up how bad the special teams were on Sunday, so the entire unit is on thin ice instead outside of Harrison Butker and Tommy Townsend.

From start to finish, Dave Toub's group was horrific against the Broncos. Marvin Mims Jr. returned the Chiefs' opening punt 31 yards to set up an easy scoring drive, while Mecole Hardman managed -3 yards on three punt returns himself.

Of course, Mecole Hardman then muffed a punt deep in Broncos territory in the 4th quarter, giving Denver an effortless TD to go up two scores. Hardman was excellent in Week 7, so his mistakes were especially discouraging.

For all the spectacular punt returns we've seen over the years, Chiefs fans have also seen a lot of fumbled returns. That simply can't happen moving forward.

Kansas City is reportedly shopping Richie James, who can also return kicks, meaning Hardman will likely be the guy moving forward.

Toub has some work to do this week before the Dolphins matchup in Germany. It'll likely be a tight contest, so maintaining a special teams edge will be paramount to a bounce-back victory.

Our final Chief on thin ice may surprise you, but no person is infalliable.

3. Andy Reid

I wanted to put Mahomes here, but we'll cut him some slack for playing through the flu. Andy Reid has no such excuse, and he put this team in a terrible spot in what should have been an easy win.

There is no reason that Isiah Pacheco should've finished with eight carries while a clearly-limited Mahomes attempted 38 passes and had another three broken plays that resulted in carries.

Pacheco gashed the Broncos in the first half of the Week 6 win before Reid inexplicably went away from him and the legendary head coach did not learn from his mistakes. Coming into the game, Denver surrendered 5.5 yards per carry, the worst mark in the league, and Pacheco averaged five yards per carry on his eight attempts.

Maybe give that guy the ball more when your quarterback isn't himself and the wide receivers can't catch a cold? Reid's short-yardage play calls have justifiably been ridiculed this season and his tendency to get too cute showed its ugly head in this matchup too.

Pacheco had ONE SINGLE RUSH in the second half. ONE! Andy, what are we doing?

Reid's refusal to adjust his game plan when it was obvious it wasn't working cost the Chiefs the game. Moving forward, I hope he shows more willingness to adapt and lean on Pacheco when Mahomes' connection with the receivers is off.

Otherwise, we may be staring down another embarrassing loss next week.

I expect a better effort in Week 9, though you can ensure you're a winner regardless with BetMGM's exclusive $200 sign-up bonus! New users who bet $10 or more on any Chiefs vs. Dolphins wager will INSTANTLY receive $200 in bonus bets just for placing the wager. Sign up for BetMGM now and let's put the stink of Week 8 behind us.

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