Chiefs vs. Chargers: Keenan Allen among matchup concerns in Week 2
A closer look at the matchups that will decide the outcome of the Week 2 game between the Chiefs and Chargers.
In Week One of the NFL season, the biggest surprise for the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs was not that they dominated the Houston Texans (again) to claim their 10th consecutive victory. Rather, it was the way they did it.
Not only did they shut down Deshaun Watson and the Houston offense for the vast majority of the game, but they also punished the Texans defense with an unstoppable run game that resulted in Clyde Edwards-Helaire being the NFL’s leading rusher after Week 1.
To some, what was also surprising was just how much the Los Angeles Chargers struggled to put away the Cincinnati Bengals. In fact, if not for a questionable offensive pass interference call against wide receiver A.J. Green in the game’s final minute, they would have lost to last season’s worst team. Certainly one could have expected the Chargers to regress slightly, at least, with the losses of Derwin James in August due to injury and longtime franchise quarterback in Philip Rivers this offseason. But on Sunday, Los Angeles looked like a team closer to competing for the top pick in the 2021 NFL Draft than they did to a playoff team.
As a result of Week One, we can all likely agree that Kansas City should waltz through the contest without much difficulty. But, what matchups will play the biggest role in determining the final score?
Tyrod Taylor and L.A.’s offensive line vs. the Chiefs’ pass rush
In their Week 1 contest, Chargers quarterback Tyrod Taylor was constantly under pressure from the unheralded defensive front of the Bengals. Sacked only twice, but hurried many more times, Taylor had difficulty standing in the pocket and finding any sort of rhythm in the team’s victory.
In the Chiefs’ contest against the Texans, the Super Bowl LIV victors kept Watson under pressure all day and ended the game with four sacks for their efforts—most of those recorded with only a four man rush.
What do you get when you pit a bad offensive line against a great defensive line? You get pressure, confusion, turnovers, and sacks. Kansas City’s defensive line should live in the backfield on Sunday and make life very difficult for Taylor and the Los Angeles offense. Maybe they won’t get four sacks again, but the front four for Steve Spagnuolo’s bunch should do plenty of damage.
We should expect to see screens, delays and quick slants from L.A. in an effort to get the ball out of Taylor’s hands quickly and neutralize the Chiefs’ pass rush.