3 Chiefs on Thin Ice Entering Bye Week Despite Win vs. Dolphins

The Chiefs pulled off an impressive win in Germany over the Dolphins, but the team struggled in the second half and nearly watch a 21-0 lead slip away in the final moments.

While some players deserve praise and adoration for their excellent efforts, others have some work to do before the Chiefs host the Eagles in a Super Bowl rematch in Week 11 on Monday Night Football.

Here are three Chiefs on thin ice entering the bye week despite an AFC-best 7-2 record:

3 Chiefs on Thin Ice Entering Bye Week

1. Matt Nagy - Offensive Coordinator

I have no idea how much blame to put at Nagy's feet for the offensive struggles and I'm on the record as saying I don't believe the issues are a major concern.

That being said, the alarm bells are likely to sound this week as fans search for a scapegoat in the bye week. Shoot, we've seen media outlets badger Nagy since the start of the season and those frustrations are only growing.

The Chiefs are averaging just 23.1 points per game after averaging at least 28.2 points per contest in the five years Eric Bieniemy was Kansas City's offensive coordinator with Patrick Mahomes.

Players are noticeably frustrated and yesterday's goose-egg in the second half won't help matters. The offense is 15th in the NFL in red zone TD efficiency (54.55%), though it did find the end zone in both of its red zone trips against the Dolphins.

Whether Nagy deserves blame or not, all indications are that the organization loves Nagy's contributions and he has a strong relationship with Patrick Mahomes.

If the Chiefs' offense doesn't improve coming out of the bye week though, fans' concern around Nagy will only continue to grow.

Kansas City is likely keeping Nagy long-term, though one offensive player doesn't have that same job security as you'll see on the next page.

2. Kadarius Toney - Wide Receiver

It sure looks like the Chiefs are phasing Toney out of the offense entirely.

Toney's snaps plummeted once again in Week 9 vs. the Dolphins. He was on the field for only seven snaps (12%) as he was sixth among Chiefs receivers in snap count for the second straight week.

I thought the Mecole Hardman trade was about cutting into Skyy Moore's playing time, not Toney's, but every piece of evidence thus far indicates I was dead wrong about that. Hardman took over the jet sweeps and gadget plays that Toney was on the field for, while Toney is relegated to just a few routes per game.

Moore's snaps have gone down as well, especially as the team leans into the inevitable Rashee Rice superstar breakout, but Toney appears to be the odd man out moving forward.

While Toney has just one catch on one target for three straight weeks, he looked excellent with that target yesterday!

He's got an uncanny ability to make defenders miss in space, wrestling through four Dolphins on that 18-yard reception. This is exactly how I want to see Toney used and I hope the Chiefs unleash him as a normal receiver instead of the frequent gimmicks they've preferred thus far.

I'm not selling my timeshare on "Toney Island" just yet, but the value of my property is rapidly declining.

The final Chief on thin ice entering the bye week may come as a shock, though one player's value is quickly diminishing as well for the defense. Find out whose on the next page.

3. Chris Jones - Defensive Tackle

Jones has cooled off from his spectacular start to the season, finishing with just one tackle and one QB hit in Week 9.

He hasn't made a huge impact on the box score in recent weeks, while his teammates' dominant performances make it harder to justify a massive extension for the 2022-23 Defensive Player of the Year finalist.

The superstar defensive tackle still ranked second on the Chiefs in pressures, but the lasting memory for fans will be his unacceptable 15-yard personal foul penalty that immediately led to a Dolphins' TD to trim the lead to one score.

All year, it's looked unlikely that Jones and the Chiefs would agree on an extension, though it looks less likely by the week.

His age combined with the emergence of Karlaftis, Trent McDuffie and others leave Brett Veach and the Chiefs with a lot of difficult decisions to make this offseason.

If this is indeed Jones' final year in Kansas City, I'm hopeful he'll destroy offenses with regularity over the next few months. Either way, he's got work to do to earn that record-setting extension he desires.

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