The Kansas City Chiefs have started the season with two straight wins, but the pass rush has gone quiet in a way that should have everyone paying attention.
After opening with four sacks in a 31-10 win over the Denver Broncos, Kansas City has gone sackless in back-to-back victories. That’s not the kind of trend a defense can shrug off, especially when the unit has already shown it can tilt a game by getting after the quarterback.
Against Denver, the pressure was constant enough to matter. Bo Nix went 17-for-28 for 131 yards and was pressured on nine of his 32 dropbacks.
George Karlaftis III led the way with three pressures, and the Chiefs added three hurries and three knockdowns. The sacks came from Nohl Williams, rookie R Mason Thomas and Felix Anudike-Uzomah, plus one team sack, for a total of four.
The next two games looked very different. In Week Two, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones had a much cleaner night on his 31 dropbacks. Kansas City managed seven hurries, one hurry, four knockdowns and no sacks, and Jones still completed 22 passes for 210 yards as the Chiefs needed overtime to pull out a 33-30 win.
Sunday brought more of the same in a 24-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins. The Chiefs did get a key fourth-down stop midway through the fourth quarter while protecting a 17-10 lead, and the offense was uneven throughout the afternoon. But the pass rush again failed to show up in a meaningful way.
Malik Willis dropped back 36 times and was pressured on only nine of those plays. Kansas City recorded seven hurries and two knockdowns, but Willis still completed 20 passes for 210 yards out of relatively clean pockets.
That has not gone unnoticed in Kansas City circles.
Rocky Magana of Arrowhead Pride praised Chris Jones for batting down a fourth-quarter pass that helped set up Karlaftis’ interception, but he was still unimpressed with the overall pressure coming from the front. "This is a topic I feel like we have beaten to death in recent years," the writer began.
"The Chiefs can’t get pressure without blitzing. Defensive end George Karlaftis is near the top of the league in pressures but struggles to get home.
We need more from the young players we drafted. Defensive tackle Chris Jones looks like his best days could be behind him.
And when you add it all up, it makes for a defense that does not rush the passer nearly as well as their investment in picks would suggest. This is the same argument we’ve been having for years now.
And the fact we’re still having it, and the Chiefs struggled to get to the quarterback against a team that had allowed nine sacks coming into this game, speaks louder than anything else I could say on this subject."
Bransen Gibson of Arrowhead Addict was just as blunt in his post-game breakdown, putting the Chiefs defensive line among four Kansas City "Losers" from the game. He wrote, "The Chiefs had zero sacks for the second week in a row, failing to bring Malik Willis down in the backfield even once. The Chiefs couldn’t get home with four or when they blitzed, which is concerning given how big of a weakness the pass rush was last year."
Gibson did give Karlaftis a "Winner" nod for his hustle interception, adding, "I haven’t been able to fault his effort this season, so it was nice to see him get a reward for it."
The challenge doesn’t get any easier this week. Kansas City heads to Sin City to face the also-3-0 Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday at 3:25 p.m.
CT on CBS. Kirk Cousins has been steady for the Raiders, going 62-for-91 (68.1%) for 661 yards with three touchdown passes in each of their three wins.
He has also thrown three interceptions and been sacked five times.
Even with that sack total, the Raiders’ line has held up well through three weeks. The unit has allowed a 17.5% pressure rate, with only 15 hurries and 11 knockdowns. If the Chiefs are going to snap out of their pass-rush slump, they’ll have to do it against a front that has kept its quarterback fairly comfortable so far.
In Other News...
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The event is another sign of how much game day around the Chiefs has become its own experience, especially with Travis and Jason Kelce leaning into the family brand they have built around their podcast. Travis Kelce will not be part of the tailgate, since he will be focused on preparing to play that night, but the setup still gives fans a fresh pregame gathering point as the Chiefs get back to work after the bye. [Read more 🡒]
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Chiefs Already Look Like A Bigger Problem Than Expected
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Across the rest of the league, other surprises have helped frame just how serious the Chiefs start has been. The Giants have banked encouraging home wins even while dealing with quarterback injuries, and Minnesota has stayed unbeaten behind a defense that has carried the load through offensive struggles. Cleveland, meanwhile, has stumbled out of the gate under new coaching, which only sharpens the contrast with Kansas City and raises the question of how much better the Chiefs can still get. [Read more 🡒]