Five ups and downs from an uncomfortable Chiefs win in Houston
By Matt Conner
The Kansas City Chiefs came into Houston and barely escaped the Texans with an overtime win in Week 15.
On a day in which very little was expected from the Houston Texans, it was the Kansas City Chiefs who found themselves frustrated (and playing from behind) for most of the afternoon at NRG Stadium. Fortunately, the Chiefs still held on for a 30-24 overtime win in Week 15.
The 10-win Chiefs somehow held off the 1-win Texans to win their 11th and claim their seventh consecutive AFC West title on a day in which most players and coaches will want to forget. From careless errors to ridiculous penalties to special teams miscues and odd conservative playcalling, the Chiefs really didn’t deserve to win this game but should feel fortunate that they’re walking away with a win as it is.
Let’s look at some ups and downs from a game that had Chiefs fans shaking their heads most of the day.
Down: Darius Harris needs to sit
We’re not exactly sure why Steve Spagnuolo is particularly enamored with linebacker Darius Harris. Yes, he’s a good story as a former undrafted free agent who has earned his ticket onto the Chiefs’ active roster. He’s a special teams player who seems like a core performer for Dave Toub as well. But while he might be a fiend in practice who has the coaches wanting the best for him, he’s also ruining some things for the Chiefs defense.
Yes, the Chiefs defense has bigger issues than a single player given the way they are playing lately, but one easy adjustment would be for Spags to stop taking Willie Gay off of the field and forcing the Chiefs to deal with obvious liabilities in coverage when it matters the most.
Against the Texans in Week 15, Harris was such an obvious mismatch early in the game, which allowed Houston to take an early lead over the Chiefs even without so many key players due to injury. Instead of seeing Willie Gay in the lineup, the Chiefs went with Harris in the same way that Spags went with Ben Niemann in similar situations. Again, the guy might be a nice story but that doesn’t mean he deserves the playing time.
Unfortunately, the Chiefs’ defensive coordinator disagrees. He even stated earlier this week that he believed Harris deserved the reps he’s getting, which means that this problem is likely not going anywhere.