Seven pressing questions for the KC Chiefs’ final seven games

7. When will Willie Gay begin to usurp some of these coverage reps from Ben Niemann? 

Let’s make this abundantly clear. No one is doubting the athleticism of Willie Gay. When the Chiefs selected Gay with their second round pick in 2020, every scouting report looked the same: “Great tools, but will likely take longer than most to grasp the playbook.”

The hard part about that for Chiefs Kingdom is the waiting. In September we had to wait two weeks just to see Gay get on the field at all. In October, we were waiting to see him find a role. Here we find ourselves beginning the season’s second half, and it’s pretty clear that in spite of Ben Niemann’s physical drawbacks, the Chiefs defensive staff would rather put Niemann on the field in high-leverage circumstances than Gay.

But why?

Obviously there are some playbook hurdles that Gay has not been able to clear. Niemann has consistently received the favor of the coaching staff in their nickel and dime packages. That’s not because of what he brings to the table. It can only be because Niemann has displayed an understanding of the defensive playbook that Gay has not yet reached. Both Gay and fellow linebacker Dorian O’Daniel are bigger, stronger and faster than Niemann, and that is not up for argument.

But here’s the quandary: Sure, we can accept that Niemann “gets” the responsibilities. But if that’s so much more important (rhetorical question alert!), why not have Spagnuolo himself do it? We all know the answer there, and Spags will tell you himself that he would get run over in no time flat. The point is, knowledge of the playbook should only get you so far, and here’s where we’re stuck with Ben Niemann. His character and mental acuity might be razor-sharp, but let’s stop ignoring the fact that he’s getting absolutely killed in the run game. Let’s stop ignoring the fact that he’s getting killed in coverage, in spite of the fact that he might be covering the right guy.

Niemann has actually been asked to play deeper in coverage in 2020 than in his previous two seasons. In 2019 his average depth of target was 3.7 yards downfield. In 2020, it is a staggering 11 yards downfield, and that is exacerbated by the fact that he’s allowing opposing quarterbacks a disgusting 142.5 passer rating in coverage (Charvarius Ward and Antonio Hamilton are the only other Chiefs who allow over 100.0 passer rating). It doesn’t get any better in the run game, where Pro Football Focus gives Niemann a 28.4 grade.

He’s a fine depth piece and special teams contributor, but as a starter, Niemann’s ceiling is as low as it gets in the NFL. He simply can not be relied upon for 40-50% of defensive snaps any more. Until Niemann can even play at a respectable level, the questions will continue. At what point do you allow the bigger, stronger, faster defender with the higher ceiling to get on the field over a player who might be in the right place, but can’t seem to get the job done?