Five things that stood out from the Chiefs’ ugly overtime win against the Titans
Man, they just don’t come easy against the Titans.
But, hey, usually the wins against the Titans don’t come at all.
So if you’re looking for the positives from the Chiefs’ 20-17 victory against the Tennessee Titans Sunday night, just start there. It’s a win.
But the list afterward is a short one.
OK, the defense was fantastic — the Titans totaled 7 yards and all of one first down on their final 10 drives. But they still almost beat a team that’s trying to win a Super Bowl.
Patrick Mahomes must’ve felt like it was 1-on-11 on offense at times, and that’s as good a place as any to start this week’s observations from immediately after the game.
1. Why not start with the quarterback?
When the book is written on the 2022 Kansas City Chiefs, and the quarterback in particular, this game likely won’t be much more than a footnote.
But it should be.
Because of what was required for the Chiefs to walk away victorious.
Mahomes threw a career-high 68 times because he didn’t have a running game. He led the team with 63 rushing yards, including the game-tying touchdown and accompanying two-point conversion.
His receivers dropped a season-high six passes.
And he spent most of the night running for his life. Which we’ll get to. And quickly. Because Mahomes masked the Chiefs’ problems — but for one night.
Speaking of which ...
2. Jeffery Simmons wasn’t lying
Jeffery Simmons called the Titans’ shot, and he was smart enough to do it a little later in the week than Shaq Barrett had a month earlier.
On Thursday afternoon, Simmons hopped on SiriusXM Radio and said he was “confident that we can go out there and dominate” the Chiefs’ offensive line.
And then they did.
About a month ago, Buccaneers edge rusher Barrett seemed to eat his words when he made a similar comment, a quote that had provided the Chiefs with motivation throughout the week. The Chiefs proceeded to beat the Bucs 41-31.
The Titans, however, backed up Simmons’ boast. Tennessee’s defensive line dominated the middle part of the game, despite typically rushing the quarterback all by their lonesome, without the aid of a blitz.
The Chiefs had to try to combat the pressure with rollouts, moving the pocket and quick throws.
Remember when the Chiefs’ offensive line developed into a strength after its formation a year ago? Uh, yeah, that’s not panning out right now.
They rank in the bottom third of the league in pass protection, and Sunday might be their worst outing yet.
3. It’s (past) time to see what Ronald Jones has
The Chiefs don’t need, say, a Derrick Henry to have an explosive running game. But they need more than what they’re getting out of the collection of Isiah Pacheco, Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon.
They see the more advantageous running opportunities than just about anyone in football, given the light boxes they face, and yet the production still lags.
The Chiefs’ offensive line didn’t have its best day — an understatement, as mentioned above — but the running backs combined for 14 yards on 13 carries. That’s not a misprint.
It’s gotten bad enough that the Chiefs completely abandoned their running game Sunday night, despite being within a single possession.
There is one other potential option.
The Chiefs have stashed Ronald Jones on their roster all year, without offering him a single game-day appearance. He’s not a one-man savior for this team’s rushing-attack woes, but after eight games without much from any of the three who are getting the opportunities, it’s time to see what Jones can do.
4. The Derrick Henry problem
Oh, yeah, that guy.
Listen, I need to qualify this but saying the defense is what turned this into a winnable game in the second half.
But Derrick Henry is still Derrick Henry.
If not for his opening half — nine rushes for 92 yards and a pair of touchdowns — it’s certainly more difficult for the Titans to get into their game plan. They weren’t going to win this game on the arm of Malik Willis.
(See the evidence after the Chiefs tied it.)
In six games against the Chiefs, including the postseason, Henry has 673 rushing yards and eight touchdowns.
5. Toney’s impact? TBD
There are some reasons to think receiver Kadarius Toney will be a good fit in Andy Reid’s offense.
There are some things, like route-running, he will need to improve to be a really good fit in Andy Reid’s offense.
And there are some things, like chemistry with his new quarterback in an offense that leaves wiggle room for wide receiver reads, that we’ll learn in time.
But what we can say after one week is that there will be an attempt to make Toney a more immediate factor.
The Chiefs opened the game with a pass to Toney in the flat, which gained two yards. He hauled in another short pass after juking a linebacker. There’s some obvious ability there, but with half the season already gone and Toney obviously not a part of training camp, he will be playing catch-up. (Didn’t spot Toney on the field in the second half, though he got a snap in overtime.)
I still think his acquisition was made with an eye toward 2023 (and potentially beyond), given the Chiefs’ current wide receiver situation, but that doesn’t mean he will be kept completely on the sidelines in the interim.
This story was originally published November 6, 2022 at 10:57 PM.