How the Kansas City Chiefs can beat the Arizona Cardinals

The Game Plan

First and foremost, the most important thing is keeping Kyler Murray in the pocket. Edge rushers need to stay in their lane, inside rushers can not get pushed outside, and the low zone players have to be ready to come down if Murray gets brave. A QB spy is a very viable option, with the lack of depth the Cardinals have for pass catchers, and both Nick Bolton and Leo Chenal could make an impact in this position, with their speed and great tackling.

Murray is not that accurate, his height seriously negatively impacts his downfield vision, and he is prone to make mistakes the longer stays in the pocket. When in the pocket for more than 2.5 seconds, Murray’s completion percentage drops from 71.8 to 59.3. He has also thrown 60% of his interceptions after standing in the pocket for more than 2.5 seconds, despite only 40% of his passes coming more than 2.5 seconds after the snap.

Next, be prepared to see James Connor a lot very early in the game. The Cards will move away from pounding the ball if the offensive line starts to falter or if the score begins to escalate, but early on, they will attempt to escape with a win, which includes milking the clock and pounding the football. Make sure to have your best run stuffers upfront and your best tacklers in the back.

On offense, the Chiefs have to get everyone involved. Let the running backs cycle in and out freely, pounding the ball inside and bouncing the ball outside. Get all of those receivers a reception, from MVS to JuJu to Watson. Wear Arizona out mentally and keep them guessing as to what is going to happen next. Frustrate them. The confusion will already be present with the short-staffed secondary but get them second-guessing themselves further, and you are destined to have a great day.