Opportunity wasted: Chiefs must regroup on positives

Twelve hours makes a difference. The Big picture takes time to develop. Twelve hours ago the Kansas City Chiefs destroyed their season. Now, they’ve missed a big opportunity to make their success easier to achieve.

There is plenty of blame to go around for this loss. The Truth is that the week 2 game against the Denver Broncos was a complete organizational failure. No one factor, player or coach can be fully responsible for the outcome. Too many things went wrong for that to be valid.

Sep 17, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid watches play against the Denver Broncos during the first half at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Turnovers, especially from veterans like Jamaal Charles and Alex Smith crushed this team. Charles’ in particular caused a 14-point swing. Playcalling that ignored risk in favor of what “could” go right setup the critical turning points. Most significantly, the total lack of second half adjustments made it impossible for the Chiefs to maintain the lead for any amount of time.

On a short week, with a gameplan that was solid if not as potent as the gameplan for week 1, this game came down to execution. Execution on the part of the the staff as well as the players was the bottom line for the the Chiefs in week two. They just didn’t have it.

Takeaways are plentiful from this game, but the most important is that the Chiefs can beat this Broncos team. They will have another chance Nov. 15.

Negatives

1. The offensive line struggled against a prime pass rush that may be the in the NFL. Jah Reid faced the toughest matchup of the evening. He jumped offsides on the first drive. It’s going to be up and down for the first half of this season.

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2. The staff missed out on a number of personnel adjustments. Alex Smith didn’t want to throw at Aqib Talib. Albert Wilson only targeted one time and that one pass was badly overthrown. That’s a problem on Smith’s part. Talk to Wilson, work to get him in position to be targeted. Even more so, it’s a problem for the staff. If Talib is blanketing Wilson, who gives up a lot so size to Talib, then make an adjustment. It was an oversight to not give Chris Conley snaps. Conley is the one Chiefs receiver that has the advantage in speed and size against Talib.

3. The adjustments were missed on defense as well. Bob Sutton missed. There is no justifiable reason that they leave the fourth corner, Jamell Fleming, on an island against the Broncos fastest, most experienced receiver. Sure, Gaines is a better nickel than Fleming, but you have to put your best cover guys on the offenses’ top receivers. Sutton needs to consider working from the skybox. He needs to watch the big picture better.

4. The playcalling was more than problematic. Short week or not, Andy Reid made ill-conceived calls that cost them the game. There’s no reason to Jeremy Maclin throw a pass. Ever. Charles averaged 9.0 YPC in the first half, but Reid insisted on passing on consecutive downs on the final possession of the half. Sherman played only 9 snaps. Reid dug the hole, the turnovers just pushed the Chiefs into it.

Positives

1. The secondary is building strength. Marcus Peters has made statement in first two games with two INTs, six PBUs and a pick-six. Let the DROY talk begin. He’s not alone, though. Ron Parker made plays against Denver that showed he’s ascending toward a top-10 free safety.

Sep 17, 2015; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles (25) celebrates with tight end Travis Kelce (87) after scoring a touchdown against the Denver Broncos in the first half at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports

2. Running the ball against a good defense is a great sign. Focusing on building a running attack that is as creative as the passing attack will make this offense formidable. Despite the fumbles, the offense has to lean on running Charles and Davis to be successful.

3. KC D-line hammered the Broncos. Jaye Howard had 5 tackles at halftime. He’s in a contract year and his motivation will pay off for the Chiefs. Dontari Poe is working into Shape and Mike DeVito and Allen bailey are making their presence felt. The depth along the defensive line will keep this team in games.

4. The defense found a way to stop the rushing attack. They worked together with the lie leading the way and held the Broncos to 61 yards on the ground and importantly, only 2.8 yards per rush. If they can continue that trend, this defense will be an improvement over the 2014 version.

Parting Shot

My last through of the day is simple. It will change the course of the season soon. Survive Green Bay and it will happen.

Sean Smith Can’t get back fast enough.

Try to enjoy the next 10 days, Addicts!

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