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a couple changes can make all the difference....(defense)

Then the Chiefs have alot of work to do.  its no secret that the chiefs were ranked at the bottom on defense, however, what may be suprising is just how bad the chiefs were statistically.  while the chiefs were competitive in alot of games it is clear to see why those games got away and we ended the season with a 2-14 record. 


Chiefs 2008 Defensive stats

Opponents yards/game- 393.2 (AFC West rank- 4th/ NFL rank- 31st)

Opponents rush yards/game- 158.2 (AFC West rank- 3rd/ NFL rank- 30th)

                    Average gain- 5.0 (AFC West rank- 3rd(tie)/ NFL rank- 31)

Opponents pass yards/game- 234.3 (AFC West rank- 3rd/ NFL rank- 28th)

                     Pass completion %- 66.7 (AFC West rank- 2nd/ NFL rank- 28th)

1st down %- 34.4 (AFC West rank- 4th/ NFL rank- 31st)

3rd done %- 47.4 (AFC West rank- 4th/ NFL rank 31st(tie))

Sacks-10 (AFC West rank- 4th/ NFL rank 32nd)

 

Pretty depressing huh?  Two major problems are two obvious ones that we have been talking about since the end of the season. 1) pass rush and 2) rushing yards/game.  K.C. needs to find a way to stop the run, especially in the AFC West. With  L.T, Darren McFadden/Michael Bush, and Knoshawn Moreno all on rival teams in the divison, Kansas city will have their hands full but it shouldnt be anything they cant handle. Hopefully this is where a 3/4 or 4/3 under should help to free up linebackers to stuff the holes and make the tackles.

Kansas City had 10 sacks total as a team last year.

Hali- 3.0

Babin-2.0 

Johnson- 1.5

Boone/Dorsey/Edwards- 1.0

Thomas- 0.5

in the offseason we really didnt do much in the way of a pass rusher.  but what is interesting is that the two linbackers that came to the chiefs in Vrabel and Thomas together had 5.0 sacks on the season.  those two alone would have held half of the sack total for the chiefs, which means that the linebacker spot will definately bring more pressure this year( say good bye to the tampa two).

Another thing that needs to be corrected is the Red Zone defense. (NFL rank 19)

67 possessions, 36 touchdowns allowed, 20 field goals allowed, .836 scoring %,  .545 TD %

compare this to Pitsburgh who ranked #1.

42 possessions, 14 touchdowns allowed, 19 field goals allowed, .786 scoring %, .333  TD %

Kansas city's Red Zone defense wasnt that bad considering, however, when looking at teams that have consistantly makde the playoffs this needs to improve.  especially the Touchdown percentage.  allowing a touchdown over half the time any team is in the red zone has to be unnacceptable.  i know what you might be thinking, comparing K.C. to the better defenses in the leauge is unfair, however, it gives good indication to what needs to improve. 

  There is a brght spot for the chiefs defense.  the secondary for the chiefs are young and have alot of talent. the secondary boosted the team in the next category i will bring up

Interceptions

Page- 4

Flowers- 2

Carr- 2

Surtain-1

Leggett- 1

Johnson- 1

McGraw- 1

Pollard- 1

the one stat that was actually in favor of the chiefs last year was the turnover ratio.  the chiefs were +5  for the season.  thats not as good as miami at +17 but is shows what the chiefs secondary can accomplish in the years to come when Flowers/Carr have matured and Gained experience.  last year was a great start for them, but things cam only go up.

 

      Several things happened last year that could have contributed to the defense being so bad last year.  from injuries and pulling people off the street to fill the holes to coaches not changing gameplan at half time.  but after hearing the stories this offseason i think that one major reason is the conditioning.  if guys arent conditioning all the time then they get tired. and when they get tired they  dont concentrate on the game which leads to missing plays or becoming injured.  With Todd Haley getting the whole team in shape and losing weight, the defense can be prepared for anything that comes their way.   EXPECT the chiefs to be a MUCH better defense in 2009!  

GO CHIEFS!!

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.

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Chiefs allowed the Opp 55% of the time to score a TD in 2008

Our Red Zone D was very good in 05 and 06 TD’s vs FG I think.

Let's Kick some ASS in 09 or Die trying

by Steve_Chiefs on Jul 2, 2009 1:20 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

There is cause for hope

I see our defense being much improved this year. As my signature line shows…I predict an overall #18 for defense this year. Not stellar…but not giving games away either.

1. The conditioning will make a big difference in the little things. Just having the extra ooomph at the end of the game to make a stop on 3rd & 2 instead of constantly letting 4th quarter drives move down field.
2. Scheme. I think this defense will be much more aggressive. Yes we will get burned by it some….but we will do some serious burning too.
3. Improvement in linebacking. I felt this was the worst area of all last year and has been stabilized at least for this season. Next offseason expect more additions here.
4. Experience. A lot of rookies got a lot of playing time last year, although a lot of it was a bad experience. But in particular, on the line we have several guys entering years where it starts to click for the D-linemen.
5. The Draft. We added the top two 3-4 DE prospects in the draft. Big tough guys who can play sideline to sideline.
6. The mindset. We now have a coach who doesn’t accept half-ass.
7. The O-line. I think our offensive line will be much better this year with guys who have a year of experience at their positions and a huge upgrade at RG. RG was probably the weakest position on the whole team last year. Reportedly D-Mac is in much better shape this year and so far injury free….I expect him to start this year and play much better….and hopefully one of the young guys will begin to step up and step into some quality playing time.
8. Indications are we will be a run-oriented ball control offense which will give the D more time on the sideline and hopefully take advantage of the turnovers the D and special teams come up with.
9. I think we will be much better against the run this year, which will give us more opportunity for sacks. This will help to change the 3rd down conversion percentage….that was where we totally sucked last year.
10. I’ve been praying a lot.

Chiefs go 9-7. LJ makes 1400 yards. DBowe makes 1200 yards. Defense #18.

by Zodeman on Jul 2, 2009 6:56 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

A large part of the turnover ratio...

Was we were beasts on fumbles and fumble recoverys last year, I think top 3 in the league. The secondary did do a pretty decent job turning the ball over though considering the lack of a pass rush.

"Success is never ending, failure is never final."

by GenericBrand on Jul 2, 2009 10:21 AM CDT reply actions   0 recs

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