KC Chiefs vs. Washington Football Team: Behind enemy lines

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 03: Chase Young #99 of the Washington Football Team jogs on the field before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 03, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - OCTOBER 03: Chase Young #99 of the Washington Football Team jogs on the field before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 03, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
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ATLANTA, GEORGIA – OCTOBER 03: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team looks on before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 03, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA – OCTOBER 03: Head coach Ron Rivera of the Washington Football Team looks on before the game against the Atlanta Falcons at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on October 03, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Any under-the-radar players that Chiefs fans should watch for in the upcoming matchup?

I’m not sure if he qualifies as an under-the-radar player at this stage of his career, but J.D. McKissic has been a godsend for Washington’s offense. His effectiveness as a pass-catcher out of the backfield is one thing. He caught the game-winning score in Week 4 and hauled in a 43-yard reception up the sidelines in Week 2 that preceded the game-winner against the Giants in Week 2. However, his ability to pick up blitzes at 5-foot-10 and 195 pounds is arguably his most intriguing trait. McKissic is definitely somebody Chiefs fans should be wary of.

What’s the overall feeling on how Ron Rivera is doing as head coach?

That’s a great question. I wouldn’t say Rivera is doing a bad job by any stretch, but there’s no hiding from the fact that Washington has been a huge disappointment over the first month of the season. Was the roster overhyped? Is the defense, which has some new faces in the secondary, still learning to play together? Is Rivera simply not getting the job done? The answers to these questions will reveal themselves soon enough, because Washington’s schedule the rest of the way is unforgiving…and it starts in Week 6 against the Chiefs.

Care to offer up any predictions for the game?

At the rate the WFT’s defense is giving up points, it’s hard to envision them beating the Chiefs. Kansas City’s defense hasn’t been much better, but if I had to pick between Heinicke and Patrick Mahomes locking horns in a potential shootout, there’s only one answer. Mahomes. I’m expecting a high-scoring affair that will ultimately be decided by Mahomes’ cannon for a right arm. Washington can’t stop a nosebleed right now, so Travis Kelce and Tyreek Hill could go nuclear in this one. I’ll say Chiefs 35, Washington 27.

Schedule