The unknown is often a source of fear. Uncertainty is uncomfortable, unsettling, and can disrupt almost every facet of your life. It comes in many forms, too—an unresolved fight with a partner that calls what's next into question, an undiagnosed medical concern. Or it could come from a favorite football contender that sits with a 5-5 record after its first 10 games.
This Kansas City Chiefs football season has done nothing but create an ever-present sense of uncertainty. After the Chiefs lost yet another perplexing game on Sunday to the Denver Broncos, they stand with no real identity—and no real glaring holes. How can a team this talented be this average? How can a team that's played so badly at times have impressive wins sprinkled in? Those two questions come from very different places, but somehow are wholly applicable to the same team. How do we not know anything about a team that we should know well?
The Chiefs, and by proxy, we the fans, are in the middle of a very interesting transitional period. On the surface, they should be chugging along, as they have for the last six seasons. The Chiefs have appeared in five of six Super Bowls while winning three, garnering "dynasty" status in the process. Yet they already sat outside the playoff picture before losing again in Denver.
Some fans are casting aside their pom poms for pitchforks, calling for massive change across the board in Kansas City. This is short-sighted. Others are equally delusional by hanging onto the "13 seconds" lore that the Chiefs were once able to muster. That's living in the past. Somewhere between "It's fine, we have Mahomes" and "Fire everyone, the game has passed them by" lies the proper response.
The most frustrating part of all is that none of us really know what we're watching. Is this an offensive juggernaut or a hot rod that's 10,000 miles late for an oil change? The defense is not good and yet is incredible in the same breath (which is impossible), but we're watching it happen. That's part of the problem. Even after 10 games, Chiefs Kingdom has no clue what it is we're watching.
Only time will tell how this all unfolds, but for now, let's take a look at what we know from Sunday.
The offense lacks identity, and it's not the players' fault
Receivers drop passes. Running backs miss holes. Quarterbacks misread defenses and throw interceptions. All of those things happen in literally every football game, regardless of who the respective receivers, running backs, or quarterbacks are. For those interested in pinning the Chiefs' offensive woes on the players on the field, you may want to skip ahead to the next section.
How do we make any sense whatsoever of an offensive game plan that saw Kansas City's offensive staff drop Patrick Mahomes back 45 times while only calling 13 designed runs, especially against the NFL's sack leaders by a wide margin? This was like being invited to a well-advertised gun fight and electing to bring a spork.
The Chiefs' front office has committed to running the football. The Chiefs employ the NFL's highest-paid center and guard. They swapped an elite pass protector for a young mauler at left guard. The running back room isn't impressive, but the Chiefs were averaging 5 yards a carry against the Broncos' defense. Time and time again in crucial situations, even short yardage situations, Andy Reid and Matt Nagy elected to drop back and let Nik Bonnito and Co. pin their ears back and disrupt a passing game that clearly didn't have much rhythm from the start on Sunday.
We've all seen the Planet Earth docuseries. There are times when zebras are prancing elegantly about, sipping water out of mirage-level pools, and enjoying life. The next minute, they're running for their life from a pack of lions. An ecosystem is created and can shift quickly, and the Chiefs' offensive staff is putting its zebras and gazelles in a small room with hungry lions far too often this season.
Lack of attention to defensive needs are killing the Chiefs currently
The Chiefs' defense played well in Week 11. If you hold a team to 19 points in the first 57 minutes and 57 seconds of a football game, you're doing okay. The Broncos' offense is what it is: they are going to run the ball behind a very good offensive line, hit quick and easy throws until they get a secondary playing up, then take an occasional shot down the field. If left without disruption, it can be very effective. The Chiefs' defense contained this on Sunday, but never disrupted it to the point of ineffectiveness.
I want to watch one game this year where Kansas City just makes an opposing quarterback's life a living hell for four quarters. I'm not talking about Geno Smith, I'm talking about a real NFL quarterback. The Chiefs' lack of ability to generate any real, consistent pressure on opposing passers is a problem, and it's only going to get worse. The front office is culpable in this, having ignored needs on the defensive front all offseason long after getting de-pantsed by the Eagles last February.
Sure, the Chiefs drafted Omarr Norman-Lott, who is currently injured, and Ashton Gillotte last April. That is awesome, I love those moves and both will eventually be difference makers. But coming into this season, did anyone think that the Chiefs' front office could look at the way the defensive line finished last season and think, "Yeah, just sprinkle in a couple of rookies and we'll be fine"? I sure as hell didn't, and I think I might be right.
Add to this some puzzling personnel decisions, like electing to play Kristian Fulton, who hadn't played in a game since Week 2, over Nohl Williams. Maybe this was a Michael Jordan-esque shadow suspension for Williams' alleged hip drop tackle on James Cook in Week 9? Either way, it makes no sense, while time and time again, we saw No. 8 standing near the scene of a completed Bo Nix pass—what some would consider a crime.
This team has a discipline problem, which is confusing
The Chiefs' locker room is loaded with players who have been to the top of the football mountain, who know what it takes to win at the highest level. This isn't just a professional football franchise; it's what every NFL team strives to be. Andy Reid's coaching staff has been there and done that multiple times over. They have dealt with problematic personnel with what has seemed like relative ease. So how the hell does this team have a problem with the one thing required in the first place: discipline?
The Chiefs were flagged six times in the first half on Sunday against Denver, 10 times overall. Denver was also flagged 10 times, so saying the officials have it out for the Chiefs isn't applicable. The amount of penalties is concerning, but the nature of them trumps the volume. False starts, illegal shifts, more dumb Jawaan Taylor alignment issues. These are administrative in nature and subsequently produce the football equivalent of a train derailment.
If there were new faces in new places, on either the coaching staff or roster, this would be expected in the first few weeks of a season. But in Week 11, for a team that has become the NFL's standard for the better part of a decade, it's perplexing to say the least. The Chiefs have some deep, deep digging to do. Ultimately, the players and coaches alike need to look inward and identify how they're 5-5, and figure out a way forward before it's too late.