The KC Chiefs defense is struggling against good offenses

There is a lot to be dissected from the Kansas City Chiefs’ loss to the Cincinnati Bengals—from the puzzling play calls to the poor officiating to only three points scored in the second half. Despite all that, it’s somewhat surprising that the Chiefs only lost by 3 points.

This brings up an interesting question: are the Chiefs struggling against good offenses? We all know how much the defense struggled in general at the beginning of the year. Their 3-4 start was in large part due to their inability to stop anyone. That was a huge problem against teams like the Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, L.A. Chargers, and Tennessee Titans.

The common denominator among those four teams is that they all have a young, good quarterback leading some high octane offenses. The Titans are the exception, but back then they had Derrick Henry, and their offense had no problem steamrolling the Chiefs.

The KC Chiefs defense has improved over the course of the season, but they are still struggling against high-powered offenses.

But after that loss, things seemed to change. Over the next 8 games, the Chiefs would go 8-0 and allowed less than 14 points per game. Sure, they drew the Aaron Rodgers-less Packers in that stretch, but still, they held the Cheeseheads to just 7 points. The other major offense that they faced in that stretch was the Dallas Cowboys.

The same Cowboys team that dropped a 50-burger on Washington were held to just 9 points by the Chiefs. That was part of a three game stretch of three straight games where the defense held their opponents to just 9 points. The other two teams—the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders—aren’t known for their prolific offenses, but aren’t slouches either.

It seemed like the defense had finally found its groove, but there were two notable exceptions to this success: the Chargers and the Bengals. Similar to their first match, the Chiefs defense allowed the Chargers to score nearly 30 points, and it took overtime for the team to overcome their division rival.

And then, the Bengals lived up to all the hype they had received all week and dropped 34 points on the Chiefs. To confirm my fears that the Chiefs are struggling against good offenses, both of those games bookended a 36-10 drubbing of the Steelers, a team well known for not having a good offense.

This troubling trend doesn’t bode well for the Chiefs heading into the playoffs. It may have already cost them the #1 seed. If they lose to the Broncos next week, they’ll officially have the #4 seed, because the other three teams ahead of them? Three good offenses that beat the Chiefs.

I don’t think the Chiefs will lose to the Broncos, and unless the Texans upset the Titans (hey, I didn’t think they’d upset the Chargers a few weeks ago, and they did!) the Chiefs will likely end up in the #2 seed. What’s crazy about getting the #2 seed is that the Chiefs would then likely face the Raiders or the Chargers again. Given their season history against high-power offenses, and those two teams in particular, I think most Chiefs fans will be rooting for the Raiders to win next week (and then vomiting afterwards).

Should they draw the Raiders, Wild Card weekend might be a breeze. However, if they draw the Chargers, it will start off a three-game stretch of brutal games against teams who have likely already beaten the Chiefs this season.

The defense will need to have a serious heart-to-heart on why they are struggling against these offenses, and hope to buckle down if they want to go to a third straight Super Bowl.