KC Chiefs defensive line will be key to victory vs. Bengals

The Kansas City Chiefs are riding an eight-game winning streak with their last loss coming on October 24 in a 27-3 defeat to the Tennessee Titans. Now, the Chiefs will face their biggest test of the season in the Cincinnati Bengals, who are coming off a 42-21 routing over the Baltimore Ravens as quarterback Joe Burrow threw for a single-game franchise-best 525 yards.

Both the Chiefs and the Bengals have the hot hand right now with a lot to fight for. The Chiefs are trying to remain atop the AFC while the Bengals are looking to win the AFC North. Burrow has thrown for 300 or more yards in three of the last four games and has not thrown an interception in three straight games.

Kansas City’s defensive line will be the key to success on Sunday if the Chiefs want to win. Kansas City’s defensive line must give Burrow trouble to come away with a win in Cincinnati.

The Kansas City Chiefs will need their defensive line to have their best game of the year if they want to beat the Bengals on the road.

Although Burrow has not thrown an interception in the last three weeks, he is tied for the most interceptions thrown with 14. He also has been sacked 44 times, the second-most in the NFL. Those two things bode well for the Chiefs.

Kansas City’s defense has come up with an interception at least once in each of the last 10 games. A lot of that has to do with the improved pass rush from Frank Clark and Chris Jones, who returned to his natural position at defensive tackle. The Chiefs also acquired Melvin Ingram, who has helped the defense improve drastically since joining the team prior to playing the Green Bay Packers in Week 9. Jarran Reed and Tershawn Wharton have also gotten more involved in helping the defensive line find success.

The Chiefs have just 26 sacks through 14 games. However, during the team’s 8-game winning streak, the number of sacks has gone up in addition to the Chiefs defensive line finding a way to disrupt the pocket and pressure opposing quarterbacks.

The Chiefs and Bengals game should be a close one and could be a shootout. But if Kansas City’s defensive line can deliver, not only could that be the difference-maker in helping the Chiefs win, but perhaps even help the Chiefs win by a wider margin than expected.