The Kansas City Chiefs lost to the Green Bay Packers Sunday night 31-24 in a quarterback matchup that most people weren’t expecting to see at the beginning of the season. Overall it was a solid performance by the Chiefs on both sides of the ball, but they weren’t able to get the job done.
Here are five takeaways from the Chiefs loss versus the Packers:
Mecole Hardman becoming a reliable weapon
Mecole Hardman has quietly become one of the Chiefs’ best offensive weapon as he got his fourth career touchdown against the Packers. When Hardman was drafted he was expected to come in and be a gadget/special team player while learning behind the Chiefs’ great receiving core, but it looks as if he should become a bigger part of the offense.
Hardman has speed similar to Tyreek Hill and it shows on the field that if you can get the ball in his hands he can take it to the house. The Chiefs made the right decision when it came to drafting Hardman.
Despite a productive performance on Sunday, you’ll be shocked to know that Hardman was in for only nine of the Chiefs’ offensive snaps. His performance shows that he’s deserving of a much greater piece of the gameplan, perhaps over the likes of Demarcus Robinson.
The Chiefs have yet to have everyone healthy on the offense, so once Patrick Mahomes, Eric Fisher and Andrew Wylie return to the offense perhaps Hardman will also see an increased role. It will be interesting to see what Andy Reid draws up with all the speed on the field at the same time and with a generational talent taking snaps at quarterback.
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Pass rush electrifies
The Chiefs pass rush again a great performance this week as they were able to get five sacks on Aaron Rodgers without two of their best pass rushers in Frank Clark and Chris Jones. Unfortunately, it seemed as if the defensive line was gassed by the end of the game and weren’t able to get to Rodgers and it didn’t help that Alex Okafor left the game early due to an ankle injury. Once everyone gets healthy it will be interesting to see how well they continue to get after the quarterback.
Kansas City’s ability to rush the passer without Jones may play an impact on his chances of a contract extension at the end of the season. Jones is one of the best defensive players in the league, but with Mahomes’ record contract looming the Chiefs are going to have to decide who they are going to pay. If the Chiefs continue to get good performances out of Tanoh Kpassagnon and some of the other younger players it could be the end Jones’ tenure with the Chiefs.
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Chiefs’ defensive backs showing signs of improvement
If you look at Aaron Rodgers stats you may think he picked the Chiefs’ secondary apart, but in reality, they had a solid game. The majority of Rodgers passing yards were against the Chiefs linebackers and not to mention a 67-yard touchdown on a screen pass to Aaron Jones. Overall the Chiefs’ defensive backs look as if they have some big strides since the beginning of the season.
Charvarius Ward is a player in particular that has shown improvement as he had a pass deflection. Ward has struggled in the past with his ball skills, so it was nice to see that he has shown improved in that area. It was also nice to see rookie Rashad Fenton have another good performance as he didn’t allow any big plays and could possibly have a big role in the defense even when Kendall Fuller returns.
The secondary isn’t perfect, but their performance in the last few games gives me hope that teams won’t be able to do whatever they wish against them especially in the playoffs. Who knows, maybe with Ward improving his ball skills, Fenton making a name for himself while Tyrann Mathieu and Juan Thornhill hold down the safety positions the secondary could actually become a strength as playoffs near.
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LeSean McCoy needs to work on hanging onto the football
LeSean McCoy is a talented running back even at 31 years old. Whenever he is in open space he is still capable of taking it all the way for a touchdown, but he needs to work on hanging onto the football. McCoy is known for his unique carrying style which has him holding the ball with one hand. In open space it can work but in traffic, he needs to learn to tuck the ball away.
McCoy’s fumble against the Packers cost the Chiefs in momentum and ultimately led to Green Bay taking the lead. This is the second time this season where McCoy has lost a big fumble in crucial moments. The first being in the Chiefs’ 19-13 loss against the Colts where he lost a fumble in the Chiefs’ red zone after being tackled, so it may be time for McCoy to consider changing the way he holds the football. That way he doesn’t cost the Chiefs any more turnovers on important drives.
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The Chiefs can win without Mahomes
It’s disheartening to be so close to stealing a game from the Packers considering all the injuries, but this performance should give the Chiefs confidence that they can win without Mahomes. It took nearly everything from the Packers to leave Kansas City with a win including a couple of lucky catches and a costly fumble from LeSean McCoy.
The Chiefs should not rush back Patrick Mahomes and continue to sit him until he is completely healthy. If the team gets a couple of their defensive starters and offensive linemen back next week against the Vikings, they could win that game if they continue this level of play.
The majority of the credit should go to Matt Moore as he has been everything the Chiefs could ask for as he completed 67% of his passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns with zero interceptions. His performance was huge as he was able to keep up with Aaron Rodgers and almost got the victory. As long as Moore doesn’t turn the ball over and continues to get the ball into the hands of the Chiefs’ playmakers they will be fine without Mahomes.
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