Here’s how the KC Chiefs distributed playing time in Monday night’s win over the Giants
It certainly wasn’t pretty, but the Chiefs did enough to pull out a 20-17 win over the New York Giants on Monday Night Football at Arrowhead Stadium.
Turnovers were once again a theme Monday night. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw another interception and tight end Travis Kelce lost a fumble. The Chiefs now have a league-most 19 turnovers through eight games.
Penalties also plagued the Chiefs, to the tune of 12 infractions for 103 yards.
“We’ve got to be more disciplined with that,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said of the penalties.
The win improved the Chiefs to 4-4 on the season. Their hope is it will kick-start some much-needed momentum, especially with the Green Bay Packers (7-1) up next on the schedule.
Here’s how the Chiefs’ snap counts worked out Monday night.
QUARTERBACKS: Patrick Mahomes (81), Chad Henne (did not play)
The Chiefs got the win, but Mahomes continues to not look the same as he did during his incredible past seasons.
He completed 29 of 48 passes for 275 yards and a touchdown with an interception for a 74.6 passer rating, the fourth straight game he’s finished with a passer rating below 91.0.
The quarterback’s turnover also marked a seventh straight game he’s thrown an interception, giving him 10 on the season.
Mahomes added 10 yards rushing on three carries.
RUNNING BACKS: Darrel Williams (52, 4 on special teams), Derrick Gore (16, 9 on ST), Jerick McKinnon (13, 9 on ST), fullback Michael Burton (4, 8 on ST)
Williams paced the backfield with 110 total yards (61 receiving), but Gore stole the show.
Despite his limited snaps, Gore was impressive. He ran for 48 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, averaging a respectable 4.4 yards per attempt.
The Chiefs will soon have an interesting decision to make. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who landed on injured reserve with an MCL sprain three weeks ago, is eligible to return in the coming week. Should the Chiefs designate him as “return to practice,” they’d have a three-week window to decide whether to move him from injured reserve to their active 53-player roster.
The Chiefs typically carry three tailbacks, but Gore looks good. Does the team keep four in the backfield?
WIDE RECEIVERS: Tyreek Hill (62), Byron Pringle (43, 9 on ST), Mecole Hardman (40, 4 on ST), Demarcus Robinson (33), Josh Gordon (32), Marcus Kemp (2, 17 on ST)
Like most opponents the Chiefs have faced the year, the Giants played both of their safeties back to force the Chiefs to work the field underneath.
As such, consistent explosive plays down the field were missing for another week.
Hill, however, thrived against the short coverage and recorded 12 catches for 94 yards and a touchdowns on 18 targets. Hardman chipped in with five catches for 63 yards on seven targets.
Pringle had one catch for 12 yards and Robinson one for 18 yards.
Gordon tallied a season-high 32 snaps but was only targeted once. The pass was deflected in the end zone and resulted in Mahomes’ interception.
TIGHT ENDS: Travis Kelce (74), Blake Bell (24, 8 on ST), Noah Gray (10, 17 on ST)
Kelce turned in a quiet game with four catches for 27 yards on seven targets. That mostly because of how the Giants elected to cover the All-Pro tight end.
“They sat and played man on him, and then they doubled him from there with a man over the top — kind of a halo-type technique,” Reid explained.
Bell was targeted twice but failed to secure a catch.
OFFENSIVE LINE: Orlando Brown Jr. (81, 4 on ST), Joe Thuney (81), Creed Humphrey (81, 4 on ST), Trey Smith (81, 4 on ST), Lucas Niang (81, 4 on ST), Andrew Wylie (4 on ST), Nick Allegretti (4 on ST), Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (did not play)
A week after allowing four sacks and nine quarterback hits, Mahomes protection corps rebounded slightly in Week 8. He was sacked twice and hit five times.
The offensive line was best in the run game when the Chiefs committed to that part of their offense. With the front five paving the way, the Chiefs totaled 107 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries, averaging 4 yards per attempt.
With right tackle Mike Remmers (knee) inactive, Niang returned to the starting lineup for the first time since Week 5. Remmers replaced Niang at right tackle in Week 6.
DEFENSIVE LINE: Frank Clark (53), Jarran Reed (43), Chris Jones (42), Mike Danna (31, 4 on ST), Derrick Nnadi (25, 4 on ST), Alex Okafor (25, 3 on ST), Tershawn Wharton (23, 4 on ST), Austin Edwards (did not play)
Jones, who made his return to the lineup in Week 7 after missing two games, displayed flashes of his former disruptive self during key moments of the game. As had been the case when he was in the lineup earlier in the season, Jones rotated inside and outside, depending on game situation.
The interior, however, is where he made an impact against the Giants. Jones recorded two tackles, a sack and two quarterback hits. Jones’ pass-rush buddy, Clark, was also a force, totaling three tackles, a sack, a quarterback hit and a forced fumble.
Jones’ and Clark’s sacks came on the Giants’ final possession. Their collective efforts drew praise from their head coach.
“For 55 (Clark) and 95 (Jones) to end the game the way they did, I thought was a real positive, too,” Reid said.
Of the Chiefs’ five quarterback hits on Daniel Jones, four were recorded by the defensive line. Nnadi had one quarterback hit to go with his three tackles.
LINEBACKERS: Ben Niemann (44, 12 on ST), Nick Bolton (43, 4 on ST), Willie Gay Jr. (38, 4 on ST), Dorian O’Daniel (20 on ST), Darius Harris (17 on ST)
Bolton made 11 tackles and now has 26 over the past two games. The rookie linebacker also recorded a quarterback hit.
The Chiefs got a good look into their future against the Giants, as Gay also turned in a strong performance. The second-year linebacker recorded an interception, marking his second straight game with a pick. He totaled nine tackles.
Niemann recorded four tackles, while O’Daniel made one on special teams.
DEFENSIVE BACKS: Tyrann Mathieu (60), L’Jarius Sneed (59, 5 on ST), Charvarius Ward (57, 1 on ST), Juan Thornhill (50), Rashad Fenton (38, 5), Daniel Sorensen (27, 10 on ST), Mike Hughes (2, 9 on ST), Chris Lammons (20 on ST), Armani Watts (17 on ST)
After being worked in gradually last week because of some missed time, Ward officially returned to the starting lineup at left cornerback and recorded five tackles.
Sneed paced the defensive backs group with seven tackles, while Mathieu chipped in five.
Sorensen saw action on a rotational basis but was beaten twice. He was on the bad end of a 50-yard deep pass, and then was in coverage on Giants tight end Evan Engram’s 5-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.
SPECIALISTS: Harrison Butker (9), Tommy Townsend (8), James Winchester (8)
Butker converted two extra points and booted two field goals, including the game-winning 34-yarder with less than two minutes remaining in the game.
Townsend punted four times for 203 yards, averaging 50.8 yards per attempt. All four punts landed inside the Giants’ 20-yard line.
INACTIVES: Linebacker Anthony Hitchens (elbow), tackle Mike Remmers (knee), defensive tackle Khalen Saunders (knee), center Austin Blythe, cornerback Deandre Baker, tackle Prince Tega Wanogho
This story was originally published November 3, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
