The Kansas City Chiefs offense is more dynamic this year. Often the credit goes to Andy Reid for his creativity on offense and to Alex Smith for his “new” approach this year.
What about Kareem Hunt as the reason the Chiefs passing game is better? NFL Network’s James Palmer reported on a conversation he had with Tyreek Hill who said defenses are playing them different this year with Kareem Hunt on the field.
“Kareem Hunt definitely makes this offense completely different,” Palmer said. “I was in that locker room Friday and Tyreek Hill told me what they see from the receiving position with Kareem Hunt on the field, what they see from the defense is vastly different than what they were seeing last year.
“In my opinion, the difference from last year to this year is how creative Andy Reid has been with these pieces in Travis Kelce, Tyreek Hill. These are just football players he can put all over the field and find their mismatches.
“The scary aspect of it is Hill told me he doesn’t even think he’s a very good receiver yet. He knows he’s a good athlete out there making plays. What Hunt does in the running game changes this entire scheme offensively. I think it’s Andy Reid and I think going downfield with Alex Smith, Hill told me they could do it last year, they just didn’t do it. This year it’s been fun finding ways to get downfield and Hunt has been a big part of that.”
I’ve praised Hunt again and again this year but I haven’t really given it much thought how his presence is changing how teams approach the Chiefs. The Chiefs haven’t had a back this dynamic since Jamaal Charles which with his injuries has been a couple of years.