No NFL team is without its flaws, and the current Kansas City Chiefs defensive line and backs room certainly have their questions and concerns that need to be addressed before the start of the NFL regular season. The two-time reigning champions, Kansas City Chiefs, have few real problems regarding talent, roster construction, and organization stability.
They’ve built a team where everyone, from the owner of the team to the last man on the practice squad, knows their role and how to play it perfectly within the Chiefs organization. However, heading into the 2024 NFL season, there is still more work that needs to be done for the current Chiefs defensive unit.
Chiefs Defensive Line
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The Chiefs’ defensive line finished last season ranked 17th, allowing 113.2 rushing yards per game. While finishing the season as a middle-of-the-pack unit, the group started much worse than that due to the cornerstone of the unit, Chris Jones, sitting out of training camp. He even missed the first regular season game due to a contract dispute.
Even with Jones’ return in the second game of the season, the rest of the Chiefs defensive tackles still struggled. While this is true, the overall defense finished the season as a top-three unit, but the defensive line remained average at best. Players like Mike Danna, George Karlaftis, and Charles Omenihu were asked to step up in Jones’ absence, and they managed to keep the group afloat.
Now in 2024, with nearly the same roster on the defensive line, depth remains a concern. Outside of Jones and the projected starting four (Jones, Karlaftis, Danna, and Wharton), Omenihu is expected to begin the season on the Physically Unable to Perform list due to a torn ACL. The depth behind the starters, including Derrick Nnadi, Mike Pennel, Matt Dickerson, Neil Farrell, and Felix Anudike-Uzomah, is relatively average compared to league-wide defensive line rooms.
Then at 30 years old, Jones will likely see reduced snaps to stay fresh for crucial moments. This means just in case, the Chiefs may need to add a veteran off waivers to help spell Jones during the regular season, as the backend of the defense, though stronger and has shown to be more reliable, has its own set of questions.
Chiefs Defensive Backs
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The Chiefs defensive back room also has its share of questions heading into the 2024 regular season, the main one being: who will play opposite Trent McDuffie? This question seemed to have an answer in Jaylen Watson, who was the leading candidate for the position after L’Jarius Sneed departed for the Tennessee Titans this offseason.
However, Watson’s performance following shoulder surgery has raised concerns. During the Chiefs’ preseason game against the Chicago Bears, Watson struggled, biting on a play fake and being out of position for a 44-yard completion. Even the Bears’ third-string quarterback, Brett Rypien, managed to get passes past Watson, making it a long night for him and a concerning one for the entire defensive back room.
With training camp and preseason now over, tough decisions must be made about who makes the cut. Additionally, the Chiefs will need to have further discussions about the No. 2 cornerback position.
Final Thoughts
Although these issues are concerning, especially for a team with high aspirations, the Chiefs defensive unit has been fairly average during Patrick Mahomes’ career, but the team has still found ways to succeed. Last season was an outlier for the Chiefs defensive unit in the Mahomes era, but it’s still likely that this team will be fine in the long run.
However, don’t expect Head Coach Andy Reid and General Manager Brett Veach to rely solely on the greatness of Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and Jones. In the coming days, they will do all they can to address these issues and put the team in the best position to make their run at history.
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