KC Chiefs vs. Steelers: Melvin Ingram gets second revenge game in a row

If Melvin Ingram is into revenge, or at least showing his former employers what he is still capable of, he picked the perfect time to join the Kansas City Chiefs. That’s because, for the second week in a row, Ingram can look at the regular-season schedule and note “revenge game” on the calendar.

In back-to-back weeks, the Chiefs will face the Los Angeles Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 15-16. Both teams are the only franchises for which Ingram has ever played—the former was the longtime home for Ingram for eight very productive seasons, the latter was a short-term home for a half-season before he was traded to the Chiefs.

Last week, Ingram’s presence up front helped the Chiefs’ defensive line make up for the loss of defensive tackle Chris Jones on the COVID reserve list with a thrilling overtime victory over the Chargers on the road at SoFi Stadium. This week, the Steelers will visit the Chiefs and it’s possible Jones will still be out, which means Ingram will be vital once again up front.

Melvin Ingram has a second straight revenge game in Week 16.

The Chiefs have benefitted from Ingram’s presence and skill set since first trading for him at the deadline with the Steelers in a deal that sent over a sixth-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft. The Chiefs had, to that point, struggled to find someone to provide gravity across from Frank Clark to balance out attention on the pass rush. Together with Jones and Jarran Reed inside, the Chiefs front four has been a wrecking crew ever since.

While Ingram only has 9 pressures and 1 sack in his time with the Chiefs, his presence also allows fellow pass rushers to get after opposing quarterbacks. There’s a reason the Chiefs defense has carried them for much of the last seven games during their current win streak and it starts in the trenches in tandem with the improved linebacking corps and a solid secondary.