Thanks to what appeared to be some really solid defense, plus a little magic and luck, the Chiefs snuck out of Soldier Field with a surprising and close win over the Bears.
The Chiefs offense, under the iffy guidance of play-caller Todd Haley, QB Tyler Palko’s* arm, the running prowess of Thom Thumb, occasionally seasoned with a dash of McCluster and a splash of Battle, somehow did not give the game away.
*I can’t quite put a “finger” on when, but I thought I might have caught a fleeting glimpse of $2.3 million Kyle Orton in the game ever so briefly. Did anybody else see that – if you blinked you probably missed it.
That defense now. That right there was something special. Justin Houston what!? Those linebackers – something good’s beginning to form there, now isn’t it?
Curious to know how just how much, if at all, this game changed Football Outsiders’ analytic opinion of the Chiefs?
You’ll get your answers, son – beyond the break.
The thing that ought to really grab your attention here you here is the fact that, the first time this season, our defense is ranked in the top of half of the league.
On the other side of the ball, we have not enjoyed a serviceable quarterback since Charlie Weis was the OC, our ball catchers have gone AWOL, and our success on offense depends almost entirely on whether one of our running backs can single-handedly move the ball.
I’m not going to pick on special teams today.
Now this is really interesting to me. Check out the Weighted DVOA percentage for our defense. Negative!**
**Recall that the more negative the DVOA percentage for defense, the better the defense, statistically speaking.
Yet another breakthrough! For the first time this season (I think?) our DL against the pass is not ranked last in the league.
Even though we really do lack a quarterback, we have some really good pieces to build on now. I like our receivers, I like our running back situation when everybody’s healthy, and I like the potential of our OL although we still might need another piece or two to get it all totally set.
Same goes for our defense. Our secondary, when healthy, is pretty good; just needs a little more depth. Our linebackers are looking, for the most part, great. Our DL? Well, we obviously still need a true NT but I can live with Dorsey and Jackson as our mainstays at DE for now.
That’s my Double Take.
What’s your take, Addicts?
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Tags: 2011 DVOA, kansas city chiefs
Damian Nelson, aka Double D, resides in Kansas City, Missouri, is a father of six who works in the Healthcare IT industry. Most importantly, he is a lifelong Chiefs fan, (tracing his fan roots all the way back to Chiefs' Huddle Club days down at Muncipal Stadium) and season ticket holder. He is among Arrowhead Addict's earliest commenters and some might even say its greatest of all time. As AA Senior Contributor, his much anticipated weekly "Double Take" feature analyzes Chiefs' DVOA stats during the regular season, serving as a popular, compelling, and provocative read.
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