The Kansas City Chiefs may not only have the greatest offensive play caller of all time, but also the best defensive coordinator in NFL history. However, even the best of the best make mistakes, and, unfortunately, Steve Spagnuolo isn't the exception to that rule.
The Chiefs' defensive coordinator continued to roll with Chamarri Conner over Nohl Williams in the Chiefs' secondary during their loss to the Jaguars on Monday night. And after watching the tape and Conner's crucial defensive pass interference, it's hard to argue that decision didn't play a role in costing the team this game.
Nohl Williams Needs More Playing Time
Through the first five games of the season, Conner has led all Chiefs defensive players in snaps (302). He even has one more snap than Trent McDuffie. Conner has continued to start in the slot, but his impact has been minimal. So far, he's logged 37 tackles (19 solo) to go along with one QB hit and one forced fumble.
The third-year pro seems to be in the way of Williams, who has shown big signs of promise in his first handful of games as a pro. Williams holds the highest PFF grade (92.3) among 165 eligible cornerbacks and is also leading the league with a 93.7 coverage grade. Conner has a 62.6 rating on PFF.
It's a small sample size, as Williams played 19 and 20 snaps in Weeks 3 and 4, respectively. For some reason, he played just four snaps in the 31-28 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Conner is known for his prowess against the run, but he has struggled mightily in pass coverage for most of his career. He gave up a huge reception to Travis Hunter that set up the Jaguars' game-tying touchdown in the third quarter, and he later had a blatant defensive pass interference call on Brian Thomas Jr. on the game-winning drive.
That was another questionable decision by Spagnuolo, as the Jaguars showed 11 personnel on third and long, yet he went with three safeties and two cornerbacks. Conner was aligned in the slot against the Jaguars' best pass-catcher, and the rest is history.
It's not that Conner is unplayable or shouldn't take the field again, but it doesn't make a lot of sense to hold back a promising third-round pick who has balled out to keep a player who may not have much upside. Hopefully, that won't be the case in Week 6 vs. the Detroit Lions.