In Week one of the NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs got off to a fantastic start by beating the Denver Broncos 31-10. It was an impressive win for a lot of reasons. Kenneth Walker III made an instant impact, Patrick Mahomes seemed unfazed just eight months after ACL surgery, and the Chiefs' defense shut down a Broncos offense that has looked lackluster all season.
Another big takeaway in that game was the fact that KC accumulated four sacks on Bo Nix. A couple were perfectly timed and executed Steve Spagnuolo-type blitzes, but there was also constant pressure from the Chiefs' front four, who continuously put Nix in difficult situations.
Since then, Kansas City has yet to record a single sack. That's three games without a sack, and if you want to include the bye week, the Chiefs have basically gone a month without putting the QB on the ground before he releases the ball.
Despite the Chiefs leading the league in pressure rate at over 40 percent, they are tied with the Miami Dolphins for the fewest amount of sacks. It's a weird combination of two stats that should go together and, in time, will probably both even out.
This week's contest versus the Los Angeles Chargers presents the Chiefs with an opportunity to finally record a few more sacks and get some momentum going for the rest of the grueling season.
Kansas City's pass-rush needs to turn pressures into sacks, and this week presents the perfect opportunity
The Chargers will be marching out an entire backup offensive line in this game. They are starting three rookies (one at each tackle position), as well as failed draft pick Cole Strange at guard.
Justin Herbert has been sacked a ridiculously bad 17 times through five games. Partly because he is playing poorly and his receiving options can't get open. But a large part of the blame does rest on the offensive line. They just haven't been able to block anybody. And that's when they actually had a couple of starters out there.
I get it. The Chiefs' pass-rush could use another proven veteran. It would make things a lot easier. But let's not act like they don't have dudes who should be able to get the QB. Chris Jones has yet to record a sack or truly make his presence felt in any of the Chiefs' four games. Playing against arguably the worst interior offensive line in the league might be the making of a Jones takeover game.
George Karlaftis and rookie R Mason Thomas have both done a fantastic job creating pressure and getting hits, but they just need to find that extra notch to get the signal-caller on the ground. This week is a perfect chance.
Contributors Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Ashton Gillotte, and first-round pick Peter Woods have all had good and bad snaps so far this year, but have flashed in different parts of games. Let's hope that against a battered o-line, the Chiefs' front four can put Herbert under major duress on game day.
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