After the loss to the Houston Texans in Week 6, Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark said something about the defense that really stuck out.
He said the defense has lacked aggression and passion for stopping the run, adding that the unit needs to get that back.
“I feel like that is one thing we have to do,” Clark said. “We have to get back to our aggression, our passion for stopping the run. As you can see, early in the season, after six weeks, we have not been able to do that. That’s just being honest.”
Football is an aggressive contact sport and right now we’re not seeing much of that aggressiveness on the defensive side of the ball. So how do they go about getting it back? I have some ideas that I think could get the entire defensive unit moving in the right direction.
A body in motion stays in motion
I’ve explained before how the Chiefs have, for the most part, remained gap-sound in run defense. Guys are where they need to be, but they’re just not attacking the ball carrier and creating tackles for loss or minimal gain. Here’s an example:
Damien Wilson and Ben Niemann are right where they need to be for this play to turn into a tackle for loss or minimal gain. It’s an option play, and Jacoby Brissett can pull the ball and run with it. Wilson should be keyed in on the running back, but he plays hesitantly. As soon as Wilson sees that hole open up in front of him, he needs to react and shoot the gap. Niemann also has a chance to play cleanup here. Instead of beating the pulling blocker to his spot and forcing a tough play for the running back, Wilson waits for the block to come to him. The result of the play was a 5-yard gain.
There has to be a way to get guys reacting and moving to the football better than they are now. My thought is that the Chiefs should try to offset some of this lack of aggression by taking more chances when it comes to play-calling. Maybe defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo can dial up a few run blitzes on key rushing downs against opponents. If the scheme gets players flowing to the football by design, maybe it will begin to come more naturally on plays like this.
Continue …
Elect a weekly tone-setter on defense
The defense isn’t lacking for leadership, but they are lacking for tone-setting plays. You know, the big tackles where you can hear the pop through the NFL broadcast. The physical ones that draw an audible reaction from the crowd. There just haven’t been many of those this season.
I know the NFL is becoming overprotective in the interest of player safety, but this team needs to get back to hitting and exerting the physical dominance over other football teams. One way that I think they can get back to that is to vote on a player each week that is responsible for coming in and setting the tone on the defensive side of the ball. They’ll accomplish that by working to create those types of physical plays.
Maybe it’s something that is matchup dependent and they choose a guy who they think is a mismatch from a physicality perspective. Whatever the process, the Chiefs need to find a way to better create those types of impact plays, especially against the run and in the short passing game.
The thing that can wear a defense down the most is these extended drives with 10 or more plays. If they can create more plays where the opponent doesn’t gain yards or better yet loses yards, it’ll put them in a better position to get off the field in later downs. It also builds energy for a defense that could be prone to having to deal with long drives at times.
It all starts with an individual effort, but those things can quickly snowball throughout the defense and become a lasting mindset.
Continue …
Continue to buy in and master Spagnuolo’s scheme
I think the Chiefs Kingdom might have been unrealistic in their expectations for how quickly this team could jell on the defensive side of the ball. Usually, a new scheme and player-talent infusion amount to at least a quarter of the regular season before things start clicking. That’s without considering things like injuries and whether this team has good enough personnel in the first place.
Even though the defense hasn’t seen the collective success we’d hoped for, it’s important for the players to continue to work toward mastering everything about the scheme. Perhaps right now guys are too focused on executing their assignments and not focusing enough on making plays. We’ve seen that happen before when players are in the process of learning something new on either side of the ball. Sometimes they need time before they can get out there and just play without thinking too much.
So while we’re approaching the halfway mark of the season, two or three weeks from now, several members of the defense could be feeling a lot more comfortable and confident in their own shoes. They need to find that balance between operating within the scheme and making plays on the football field. Once they find that, this defense could be looking a whole lot better than it does in the interim.
Go back …
