The Chiefs secondary has overcome several early season hurdles
In the first quarter of the season, the Kansas City Chiefs secondary has seen several obstacles. How have they overcome those them?
Another offseason came and went where the Kansas City Chiefs decided not to invest nearly as much in the cornerback position as many fans hoped. Whether that be through free agency or the NFL Draft, the Chiefs chose not to pour too much money or draft capital into the position. The result left fans concerned about the group heading into another year.
That concern only intensified with the four-game suspension to Bashaud Breeland for violating the NFL substance-abuse policy. With knowledge of the likely suspension in April, the Chiefs still chose to bring Breeland back on a one-year deal a couple of weeks before the draft. Kansas City also waited until Day 3 of the draft, a theme for general manager Brett Veach, to select two cornerbacks in L’Jarius Sneed and Thakarius “BoPete” Keyes.
The other question surrounding the secondary was whether or not second-year safety Juan Thornhill would return Week 1. Thornhill suffered a torn ACL in the Week 17 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Even if he would be back on the field for Week 1, it was expected to be in a limited role, and questions of how he would initially look were surfacing.
Starting the season without Breeland, the thought was that second-year cornerback Rashad Fenton would start opposite of Charvarius Ward. Fenton saw time in 2019 due to injuries and showed development late in the season, bringing optimism. He played primarily in the slot as a rookie, until Week 17 when he moved outside.
Surprisingly, the Chiefs elected to start their fourth-round pick instead. In the Week 1 matchup against the Houston Texans, Ward left the game with a fractured hand. Fenton entered the lineup opposite of Sneed in the second half and never looked back. He had a rough start in that first game, but each week has gotten better.
The obstacles continued as Sneed suffered a broken clavicle against the Baltimore Ravens Week 3. To replace the promising young talent, Ward came into the game with a cast and has filled that left boundary position.
Despite all of the injuries, suspensions, and inexperienced players taking on significant roles, the Chiefs pass defense ranks near the top in several categories through the first quarter of the season. In four games, the defense has yet to allow a team to score more than 20 points, averaging 17.5 points per game allowed ranking second in the NFL behind the Indianapolis Colts. The team also ranks third in passing yards allowed per game with 195. That’s enough to put them at the top of the Defense Adjusted Value Over Average rating (DVOA) against the pass.