Bob Sutton can prove the problems were personnel

After a frustrating year for the Kansas City Chiefs defense, only time will tell if the underlying issues from 2017 were Bob Sutton’s fault.

The Kansas City Chiefs defense struggled in the 2017 regular season after being the stronger side of the roster since head coach Andy Reid and defensive coordinator Bob Sutton came over in 2013. Most fans blamed Sutton for the issues after the Wild Card loss to the Tennessee Titans that resulted in another early playoff exit.

There is plenty of argument to be made that Sutton’s tactics and scheme were an issue in the defense as they fell to the lowest in almost all categories since he came to town. The bend but don’t break system that he builds his plan around has fans pulling at their hair when the team can’t get off the field for long drives. The failure to generate the slightest pressure on opposing quarterbacks and cover even some of the most average receivers in 2017 only made things worse.

For the first time since 2013, the Chiefs defense ranked outside of the top ten in points allowed. We saw a slight decline start to happen last season when they ranked outside of the top five for the first time. How much of that can truly be put on the coordinator and not the players, however?

Injuries have played a part the last two years

In both 2016 and 2017, the Chiefs suffered numerous injuries along the defense including some of their key players. In 2016, outside linebacker Justin Houston was out for most of the regular season only playing in five games. In his absence, outside linebacker Dee Ford had his best year in sack totals but it still wasn’t good or consistent enough to generate the proper pressure on the quarterback that the Chiefs needed. Ford was also injured in Houston’s second game back and when coming back wasn’t the same player as we saw in the first part of the season.

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The entire defensive line took hits as defensive linemen Allen Bailey and Jaye Howard were both sent to injured reserve early in the season. Defensive tackle Dontari Poe was arguably overworked to help compensate for the injuries and rookie defensive end Chris Jones was forced onto the field earlier than expected. To finish it off, just before the playoffs, inside linebacker Derrick Johnson went down with a season-ending injury as well.

The secondary was left to pick up the slack even with a putrid pass rush that meant they had to cover longer. They took on that task with high success leading the league in turnovers. The bend but don’t break system worked as the Chiefs defense ranked 4th in red zone scores allowed.

In 2017, the Chiefs started off the season in the opener by losing star safety Eric Berry. Most fans brushed it off thinking that it wouldn’t be as dreadful without Berry only to be very concerned with the secondary going further into the season. Cornerback Steven Nelson was on the injured reserve list for the first seven games of the season and provided very little comfort for the Chiefs defense upon return. Ford only played in a few games before disappearing and eventually ending up on the injured reserve list late in the season.

Lack of pass rush has crippled Chiefs defense

In both of the declining seasons, the Chiefs have had a meager amount of healthy talent rushing the quarterback. With Houston out for most of the 2016 season and Ford has been injured ever since Houston’s return even carrying over into the 2017 season. Add that to the fact that outside linebacker Tamba Hali has been in an extremely limited role the last two seasons due to lingering injuries (or age), the Chiefs have had very little to talk about at the position.

Probably the most notable change from before the Chiefs defense began their decline was the pass rush not being available. The first three seasons under Reid and Sutton, the defense was in the top five for points allowed. In those seasons the pass rush got home for a sack more than 40 times each year. In the last two, the defense has failed to sack the quarterback more than 37 times.

Health, age, and lack of development have taken its toll on the Chiefs edge rushers. The first three seasons there was a heavy dose of Hali lining up across from Houston that consistently put up numbers and was talked about as one of the best rushing duos in the league. Ford has yet to show much improvement in his development since being drafted in 2014. His undersized frame and lack of moves have come up shy of the Chiefs expectations for him.

Hali is likely on his way out the door this offseason after being a nonfactor in 2017 and with either Ford or Houston being injured the last two seasons, guys like outside linebacker Frank Zombo has seen a significant uptick in snaps for the defense. Zombo is a modest run defender but lacks any type of pass rush to get home. This leaves the other side opposite Zombo getting all of the attention from offensive lines. If the Chiefs can find someone to step up across from Houston in 2018, the pass rush will be improved significantly.

The pass rush has been so bad that we saw Houston spending about 25% of his snaps in coverage. Sutton saw that the rush wasn’t getting the quarterback off his position and decided to put more guys in coverage. If Jones can leave the sophomore slump behind and develop more in 2018 at a consistent speed and the outside linebacker position opposite of Houston is upgraded, this front seven can be dangerous again. It would still benefit the Chiefs to additionally seek more help along the defensive line this offseason.

Can new faces help this defense in 2018?

After their 2016 campaign leading the league in takeaways on defense, the injuries that were coming back made it seem this was going to be a great year for the defense. Instead, it fell backward again. The decline in 2017 showed us that there can be some major improvements around the defense. GM Brett Veach has been working hard to bring in depth around the defense between inside linebackers and cornerbacks.

Veach has done a good job finding some cheap, young talent in trades, but he will have his work cut out for him as the Chiefs are moving on from Marcus Peters. Other longtime veterans like inside linebacker Derrick Johnson and safety Ron Parker. The Chiefs are trying to get younger on defense and move on from players that are likely past their prime. Veach will also be trying to clean up the cap room by getting rid of players on expensive contracts.

After key players being injured and losing a step over the last couple years, we have seen some exposed positions in the defense. Could Sutton’s defense return to top five in points allowed like it was the first three years in Kansas City? Could the problem of been the personnel not being able to either step up or keep up to carry out the scheme? Only time will tell when the Chiefs defense has plenty of new faces in 2018.

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