While the Chiefs’ defense shut down one of the most explosive offenses in the league, quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his offense are in a rut. During the locker room celebration at Deutsche Bank Park, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid kept it real with his postgame speech.
After congratulating the defense for doing “a heck of a job” on November 5, “offense, you did enough,” Reid said, before issuing an apology to the offensive line.We’ll get better. We’ll get better,” he said. “O-line, I owe you one, men.”As for the reason behind the rare mea culpa, it stemmed from their final offensive play against the Dolphins, or lack thereof.“The Chiefs had an opportunity to finish the game on offense by keeping the ball away from the Dolphins with a successful four-minute drive late in the fourth quarter,” The Athletic’s Nate Taylor wrote. “However, the Chiefs punted after just three plays.
“Instead of trusting his linemen to generate forward movement at the line of scrimmage with a simple running play on a third-and-1 snap, Reid called a play that required Mahomes to pass. But all of Mahomes’ receivers were covered, forcing him to throw an incompletion that gave the Dolphins another chance to rally.”
It was a huge mistake by Reid that nearly cost the Chiefs the game. “If we ran it, you’d ask me why we didn’t throw it,” Reid told reporters after the game. “But I’m going to tell you I probably should have put in the hands of the big O-line.”Over the past two weeks, the Chiefs offensive line has given up four sacks and 19 pressures. While Kansas City has given up the least amount of sacks per game in the league, they rank 30th in rushing success rate.
Reid’s coaching decisions are a factor. SB Nation’s Nate Christensen pointed out several occasions in which the Chiefs unsuccessfully utilized 12 personnel (two tight ends, two receivers, one running back) on third and long.
