KC Chiefs rookie report: Skyy Moore breaks out vs. Chargers

Bryan Cook, Safety (Round 2, Pick 62)

Safety Bryan Cook played 37 snaps, the second most all season for him, against the Chargers on Sunday. He played 23 coverage snaps and was only targeted twice, but allowed 2 catches for 17 yards and a touchdown, including the go-ahead touchdown for Los Angeles right after the two-minute warning, although one could blame that more on a great play design and lack of communication rather than Cook’s performance. He also recorded three tackles.

It wasn’t the most eventful game for Bryan Cook, but it was his fourth consecutive solid performance. Over his past six games, he’s recorded nine tackles but hasn’t missed one. Since Week 4, he is the only player on the Chiefs’ defense to record at least eight tackles, while also not missing one. He has been a very good player for Kansas City this season and although I’m not sure he has a super high ceiling, he is looking like a player who Steve Spagnuolo can rely upon for the next several seasons.

Joshua Williams, Cornerback (Round 4, Pick 135)

Ever since the return of Trent McDuffie to the starting lineup, it’s been clear that Joshua Williams is the third cornerback on the depth chart, behind only McDuffie and L’Jarius Sneed. Against the Chargers on Sunday, Williams was fantastic against the run, recording two assisted tackles in 15 run defense snaps. He did have a rough night in coverage. In one of the biggest plays of the game for Los Angeles, Justin Herbert hit Keenan Allen for a 46-yard gain on 3rd-and-18 late in the 4th quarter against Williams. To be fair to the rookie, it appeared that Allen committed offensive pass interference on the play, but it was not called.

Joshua Williams has been a pleasant surprise this season. Since the game against the Buffalo Bills in Week 6, he’s been very good in coverage, especially zone coverage, and has been great against the run since the bye week. Since he played college football at a Division II school, it was expected that Williams would be a project and that 2022 would be a redshirt-type season, but that hasn’t been the case. If he continues to grow then he has a chance to be a great player for the Chiefs going forward.

Trent McDuffie, Cornerback (Round 1, Pick 21)

In my opinion, Sunday night was the weakest game that rookie cornerback Trent McDuffie has played all season. That isn’t saying much since he was just average, and if an average performance is as weak as he gets, then it’s safe to say that most Chiefs fans will take that.

Where McDuffie had a rough night was defending the run. He was poor in that portion of the game, which included a missed tackle. He did have a solid game in coverage. He played very well in zone but was beaten by Keenan Allen on an out-route on his only man-coverage target, though fortunately, Justin Herbert missed his receiver on that play.

McDuffie is having a great rookie season so far, even with his hamstring injury keeping him out of several games. He’s been very good in man coverage, despite his small stature, and has been phenomenal in zone, which was an area for improvement coming out of Washington, though not a significant one. He is the clear-cut #1 boundary cornerback for the Chiefs, with L’Jarius Sneed manning the slot, so Kansas City will rely heavily on the rookie to hold up once the playoffs begin if they want to win another Super Bowl trophy.