Behind a patched offensive line, without his two starting tackles,
Super Bowl LV was an ordeal for Patrick Mahomes,
who ran for more than 500 yards that Sunday in Tampa, on the run from the Buccaneers' defenders.
Mahomes was sacked twice, but was hit nine times and
Kansas City's
explosive
offense was thwarted to just three field goals.
The offseason priority for general manager Brett Veach was obvious:
reconfigure the offensive line and better protect his "Golden Boy."
Thus, the Chiefs
obtained
in a trade with Baltimore
tackle Orlando Brown,
Mahomes' new bodyguard;
in addition, Veach
signed guard Joe Thuney
(Patriots) and in the second round of the Draft he
drafted Creed Humphrey.
Overnight,
Kansas City again has
(at least on paper)
one of the best offensive lines
in the league.
In other words: bad news for the rest of the NFL.
With Mahomes at 100%
(he suffered a foot injury at the end of last season),
the Chiefs' attack is virtually unstoppable.
Tight end Travis Kelce (105 receptions, 1,416 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2020) and wide receiver Tyreek Hill (87-1,276-15) are probably the two best at their position, so Sammy Watkins' departure just means more chances. for Mecole Hardman.
In his rookie season,
Clyde Edwards-Helaire led the Chiefs, but with just 803 yards and four rushing touchdowns
in 13 games.
Coach Andy Reid needs better production from his young running back, especially when he wants to control the game clock.
The Kansas defense, under Steve Spagnuolo, was not and will not be one of the best in the NFL, but it is timely
: The Chiefs finished with 16 interceptions, just two behind the leading teams.
Safety
Tyrann Mathieu finished with six.
In fact, the "Honey Badger" is the lifeblood of that defense, which needs to improve when it comes to putting pressure on quarterbacks.
Chris Jones went from 15.5 sacks in 2018, to 9 in 2019 and 7 in 2020.
In July of last year,
Jones signed a four-year, $ 85 million contract extension,
including a guaranteed $ 60 million.
For that money, the team expects more than 7 sacks per season.
But as long as Reid is the head coach and Mahomes is the quarterback,
the Chiefs have to be considered contenders in the AFC.
With the revamped offensive line, a third visit to the Super Bowl is the least expected of this historic franchise.
Kansas city chiefs
2020 record:
14-2
Stadium:
Arrowhead Stadium
Super Bowl titles:
2 (IV and LIV)
Head coach:
Andy Reid
Offensive Coordinator:
Eric Bieniemy
Defensive coordinator:
Steve Spagnuolo
2021 calendar
Week 1 |
Week 2 |
Week 3 |
Week 4 |
Week 5 |
vs. Browns |
in Ravens |
vs. Chargers |
in Eagles |
vs. Bills |
Week 6 |
Week 7 |
Week 8 |
Week 9 |
Week 10 |
in WFT |
in Titans |
vs. Giants |
vs. Packers |
in Raiders |
Week 11 |
Week 12 |
Week 13 |
Week 14 |
Week 15 |
vs. Cowboys |
BYE |
vs. Broncos |
vs. Raiders |
at Chargers |
Week 16 |
Week 17 |
Week 18 |
||
vs. Steelers |
in Bengals |
in Broncos |
Projected starting team
Offensive |
Defensive |
Special teams |
||||||
QB |
fifteen |
Patrick Mahomes |
LDE |
95 |
Chris jones |
K |
7 |
Harrison Butker |
RB |
25 |
Clyde Edwards-Helaire |
LDT |
90 |
Jarran Reed |
P |
5 |
Tommy townsend |
WR |
10 |
Tyreek hill |
RDT |
91 |
Derrick Nnadi |
PR |
17 |
Mecole Hardman |
WR |
17 |
Mecole Hardman |
RDE |
55 |
Frank Clark |
KR |
17 |
Mecole Hardman |
WR |
13 |
Byron pringle |
LB |
54 |
Nick bolton |
|||
TEA |
87 |
Travis kelce |
LB |
53 |
Anthony Hitchens |
|||
LT |
57 |
Orlando Brown Jr. |
CB |
35 |
Charvarius Ward |
|||
LG |
62 |
Joe thuney |
CB |
38 |
L'jarius sneed |
|||
C |
52 |
Creed humphrey |
H.H |
32 |
Tyrann Mathieu O |
|||
RG |
65 |
Trey smith |
FS |
49 |
Daniel Sorensen |
|||
RT |
67 |
Lucas Niang |
CB |
twenty-one |
Mike hughes |
Draft 2021
Round |
Name |
Position |
School |
2 |
Nick bolton |
LB |
Missouri |
2 |
Creed humphrey |
OL |
Alabama |
4 |
Joshua kaindoh |
FROM |
Florida State |
5 |
Noah gray |
TEA |
Duke |
5 |
Cornell powell |
WR |
Clemson |
6 |
Trey smith |
OL |
Tennessee |
Movements
High
LT ─ Orlando Brown
LG ─ Joe Thuney
C ─ Austin Blythe
Low
LT ─ Eric Fisher
RT ─ Mitchell Schwartz
WR ─ Sammy Watkins
Player to watch
The Chiefs defense needed an upgrade at the linebacker position, so V
each and Coach Reid recruited Nick Bolton in the first round
, a fierce tackler who in his last two years at Missouri totaled 198 stops, including 16.5 in the first round. backfield.
He will start his career as a weak side linebacker
, but eventually he will patrol the center of the field and for that he has to pay close attention to the work of Anthony Hitchens.
With Bolton on the field,
Spagnuolo can be more aggressive with his linebackers
and more effective when it comes to defending the pass.
Readings
Junious "Buck" Buchanan was the first player selected in the 1963 AFL Draft.
He was one of the best defensive tackles of his generation and only missed one game in his 13 seasons with the Chiefs (1963-1975).
He was the terror of quarterbacks
and in 1967 he deflected 16 passes at the line of scrimmage.
He played in Super Bowls I and IV,
in six AFL All-Star Games and two Pro Bowls.
"Buck" Buchanan (September 10, 1940, Gainesville, Alabama) was
inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1990
and died in 1992, aged 51.
