Twas a great day for Chiefs fans on Sunday. Beating Peyton Manning and the Broncos was well overdue.
Even though the Chiefs won the game this was not a perfect game from Reid. Beating the Broncos 29-13 on the road without a perfect game from Reid leaves some reason for optimism the rest of the season.
We'll be using the same grading criteria as we have been in the past weeks.
Grading Criteria (Points Possible)
- Starting Roster (15)
- Player preparedness / discipline (15)
- Offensive play calling (30)
- Game altering decisions (25)
- Clock management (15)
- Challenges +/- a range of 5 points.
Let's get rolling!
Starting Roster
Before the game started I questioned whether or not Jeff Allen should perhaps play the RT position while Zach Fulton filled in as a guard. Shows how much I know as Jah Reid did a pretty solid job at right tackle. It will be interesting to see what happens if and when Grubbs is healthy. Reid also chose to scratch Knile Davis who hasn't done much this year. Scratching Davis didn't necessarily impact the game much given his replacement, Spencer Ware, didn't get many snaps.
Starting Roster Grade: 15/15
Player Preparedness Discipline
Below are a few of the factors that played into the player preparedness grade.
- The Chiefs came out nasty and with swagger on both sides of the ball, not only creating the turnover but running right down the field. They didn't let the Broncos push them around. A personal foul was called on Jah Reid for dive bombing Von Miller, but I'll gladly take that penalty as long as it's a one-time deal.
- After a horrid five turnover game earlier in the year against the Broncos, the Chiefs held onto the ball. They have quietly become one of the best teams in the NFL when it comes to taking care of the ball.
- Aside from the personal foul by Jah Reid, the Chiefs committed 10 penalties. This is not good.
Player Preparedness Grade: 12/15
Offensive Play Calling
We're going to look at a few factors for the play calling grade. Most of them will focus on the success of the offense.
Run/Pass Ratio: 26 rushing plays, 39 pass plays. 40% runs, 60% passes. These numbers actually represent the litmus test for run / pass mixture I am looking for through the season. Reid needs to run the ball at least 40% of the time for the Chiefs to have sustainable success. It was also good for West to get 20-plus carries.
Third Down Conversion: 4/16 - 25%. This is poor, regardless of playing a good Broncos defense.
Red Zone TD Rate: We'll consider the red zone to be instances where the Chiefs had a fresh set of downs within Denver's 25 yard line. 1/3 - 33% in red zone percentage. 33% red zone TD rate is poor, but not horrible.
TD to Scoring Rate: 2/8. The Chiefs scored two touchdowns to six field goals. This is also a poor TD rate of 25%. The Chiefs scored 29 points in this game, but should have scored much more.
I really wanted to keep a stat for screen percentage. Maybe next we'll I'll keep track of each time Reid calls a screen so we can see (just for fun) how frequently Reid is calling the screen plays.
Reid may have put the brakes on the offense with a big lead and the Chiefs were playing a very good Broncos defense. That said, Reid still could have led the offense to more points given all of Denver's turnovers. Besides who doesn't want to hang 50 on the Broncos in their house?
Offensive Play Calling Grade: 21/30
Game Altering Decisions
- 4th and 1, 13:35 in the 2nd quarter - ball on DEN 41. Reid elected to go for it here with the Chiefs up 10-0. I liked the aggressive call on the road.
- Same drive; 4th and 1, 11:40 in the 2nd quarter - ball on DEN 31. Reid kicked the FG. Perhaps Reid should have gone for it here as well. He has been generally conservative in 2015.
- 4th and 2, 3:34 in the 2nd quarter - ball on DEN 16. Reid once again elected to kick the FG up 13-0. This is another safe call by Reid. Some time this year he will have to go for the jugular.
- 4th and 2, in the 4th quarter - ball on DEN 29. With the Chiefs up 29-6, there was no need for Reid to go for it here. The FG was the best option.
As the season progresses there will be situations where Reid hurts the team by not going for it on fourth and short. FGs are good and put points on the board, but sometimes they won't win the game. Reid should consider increasing his aggression on fourth and short situations.
Game Altering Decisions Grade: 18/25
Clock Management
- Nearing the end of the second quarter Reid and the Chiefs inexplicably let about eight to 10 seconds run off the clock before calling the timeout. These little mishaps need to be cleaned up.
- Also at the end of the second quarter the Chiefs elected not to call their final timeout with about 40 second left in the half. Maybe Reid wanted to hold onto the timeout in case he needed it for another FG attempt. Given the situation in the game this wasn't too bad of a decision.
- With the Chiefs blowing out the Broncos in the second half, clock management didn't really take the front seat in terms of important game factors.
Clock Management Grade: 12/15
Challenges
Reid threw the challenge flag and overturned the ruling on the field which ultimately led to a Ron Parker interception. Bonus points!
Week 10 Grade: 81/100
It seems strange in a week where the Chiefs blow out the Broncos in Denver that Reid would only get a B-. However this is reason for hope. Reid beat the Broncos on the road without his A game. Crippled Manning or not, this is very impressive.
2015 Average Grade: 72.44%
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Next week at San Diego
Below are a few things I'd like to see Reid do in San Diego
- Run the ball, a lot. Give West at least 20 carries again. If the Chiefs get down early, DO NOT abandon the run.
- Travis Kelce crossing routes over the middle.
- Where's Jeremy Maclin been lately? I'd like to see Reid to try and get him involved early on.
- Do not slow down the attack if the Chiefs get up in the game. Philip Rivers can still score a lot of points in a hurry.
I haven't familiarized myself with the Chargers much this season. I am not too keen on their weaknesses. Does anyone else have any pointers on things Reid can do to prepare the Chiefs for a successful outing in San Diego?