Kansas City Chiefs: What will the run defense look like?
Oct 19, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; Kansas City Chiefs inside linebacker Josh Mauga (90) reacts after the San Diego Chargers scored during the first quarter at Qualcomm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
The Kansas City Chiefs ranked second in scoring defense for the 2014 season. The only team to allow fewer points was the Seattle Seahawks. When you are second only to a team that is known for its defense and made it to the biggest game in your sport for two consecutive years, you are doing pretty good.
That number two ranking though, was in large part due to the enormous strength of the pass rush, and Justin Houston‘s outstanding stat of 22 sacks on the year. Like in scoring defense, K.C. was second only to Seattle when it came to defending against the pass.
Unfortunately, that streak of excellence did not hold true for the rushing defense. The Chiefs were one of only six teams to allow over 2,000 yards on the ground last season. The company they kept in that category included teams like Jacksonville, Tennessee, and Cleveland.
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Throughout the 2014 season, it was evident that the defense was the biggest reason the Chiefs were staying in games, and were able to finish with a winning record. But it was also obvious that if an opponent got the run game going, it could quickly turn everything on its head.
This was very evident in the two games against Denver. When the Chiefs and Broncos met in Week 2 in the Mile High City, it was an unexpectedly close contest that was not decided until the very end of the game. The horse men were a pass reliant team for that game. Peyton Manning was not shattering records but completed 21 of his 26 pass attempts for 242 yards and three touchdowns. The Broncos’ run game was mostly Montee Ball, who combined with C.J. Anderson for a total of 91 yards and no touchdowns on 17 attempts.
Contrast that with the game in Week 13, when the Chiefs had the services of Jamaal Charles and home field advantage. Couple that with the fact that Manning had a noticeably worse day (completing 17 of 34 attempts for 179 yards and two touchdowns), and it should have been a great day for the Sea of Red. But the game was never really that close.
Every time it seemed like the Chiefs had a chance, it was dashed with another big gain from a second year running back. C.J. Anderson ended the night as the undisputed player of the game, and ran for 168 yards on 32 attempts. When you add in the 11 other rushes from Juwan Thompson and David Bruton, the Broncos actually gained 42 more yards on the ground than they did through the air. All three running backs had a gain of at least 13 yards.
By and large, the blame for these shortfalls was heaped on the absence of Derrick Johnson and Mike DeVito. And the fact that these two players will be returning from injury for this season has been seen as cause to believe the run defense will be much improved.
Next: Yet, there is more to the story...