The Chiefs offense hasn’t looked very good in a month. One theory is that the concussion / non-concussion that Alex Smith had is affecting him because he hasn’t looked quite right since that happened, like there’s some hesitation. I can see that.
Another theory is that the Chiefs rushing game is to blame, at least partially. I just noticed that the Chiefs haven’t run for over 100 yards in four games. Last year during their winning streak, they were under 100 yards rushing just once. Think about that.
There are some reasons for it this year. They lost Spencer Ware for part of that stretch. They got down 17 to the Panthers. Still, this is not a running team like we thought they could be.
“They’re fixable things,” Andy Reid said of the Chiefs offense. “I’ve got to make sure we’re taking the things our guys are best at, and put them in position to do those things. I’ll make sure I get that honed up a little better. And when you’re given an opportunity -- you could ask our guys this too because they’re standup guys -- you’ve got to make a play. And that’s how you do it, whether you’re an offensive lineman, quarterback, running back, wide receiver, etc. You’ve got to do that consistently if you’re going to be a championship team. That’s how it goes.”
The best game the Chiefs have played this year came against the Raiders, a 26-10 win in Oakland. It’s probably not a coincidence that they ran for 183 yards on the ground that day, by far their best rushing game of the year.
The running game is important in Kansas City. They’ve invested into it. They need it to work. The Chiefs are not good enough anywhere offensively to become one-dimensional.
There are a lot of things offensively that need to be fixed. The running game is one of them.