The Kansas City Chiefs look to complete the franchise first repeat championship in its history on Sunday evening against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The game is replete with storylines, but probably none more intriguing than the matchup of the “greatest of all time” in Tom Brady and the “heir apparent” in Patrick Mahomes.
The Chiefs are on a tear right now, the second half of the Cleveland Browns matchup aside, and have essentially rolled their two opponents in the playoffs. Some could argue they beat the second best team left, beating the Buffalo Bills handily in the AFC Championship, but nonetheless the Buccaneers pose a unique and challenging obstacle.
There are a number of factors that have already been talked about ad nauseum, but let’s take a look at the three most crucial to a Chiefs victory. If the Chiefs can prevail in these areas there’s a better chance than not they are hoisting the Lombardi to close out this unique season and joining a short list of teams who have repeated as champions.
Neutralize Buccaneers pass rush
This is probably the most talked about point leading up to the Super Bowl. The way the media puts it, the Buccaneers defensive line are like piranhas with blood in the water looking at the Chiefs offensive line. The Chiefs are starting multiple “backups” against a defensive line that had quality days the last two playoff games.
In actuality the Chiefs offensive line is made up of a group of individuals who have played a significant amount in “next man up” duty the past two seasons. Last year the Chiefs line was replete with injuries, and players like Andrew Wylie stepped up to play significant snaps and achieve a quality grade from Pro Football Focus.
In similar fashion, Stephen Wisniewski was brought on late in the season and was an integral cog in the Chiefs line that protected Mahomes against one of the greatest defensive lines in recent memory in Super Bowl LIV.
This year it’s those players along with newcomer Mike Remmers, who is having one of his best seasons as a professional and will be playing in his second Super Bowl on Sunday. Don’t forget Nick Allegretti, who’s having a solid second season as a professional on the interior of the Chiefs line. The truth is, the Chiefs offensive line won’t be at 100 percent Sunday but from a comparison relative to the rest of the season they aren’t that far off.
The other question concerning the Buccaneers pass rush is whether pressure actually matters as much in this matchup as some might think. The Buccaneers do in fact generate the fourth highest pressure rate in the league, but they blitz at the fourth highest clip as well. Interestingly enough, they only convert that pressure to sacks at the 10th highest rate.
Do you know who happens to be fairly effective under pressure that doesn’t lead to sacks? Patrick Mahomes is elite under pressure, so if the Buccaneers are unable to actually convert that pressure to sacks I’m not sure it’s going to matter too much. If the Chiefs can neutralize this factor, from moving the pocket to screen passes to running the football, they’ll be at a major advantage.