Arrowhead Pride
On Sunday afternoon, the Kansas City Chiefs collected a 37-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium, bringing their record to 2-2 on the season — and backing the Ravens into a 1-3 corner.
Before Sunday’s game, Baltimore quarterback Lamar Jackson hadn’t given the ball away even once this season. But on a rare coverage snap, Kansas City linebacker Leo Chenal turned to cut in front of tight end Mark Andrews to collect the first pick of his career. His teammate Nick Bolton — who spent a good portion of his afternoon skulking behind the defensive line until Jackson committed himself to passing or running — contributed to Jackson’s interception by forcing him into an early throw.
Late in the second quarter, it was Chenal’s turn to spy on the Baltimore quarterback. Ravens’ center Tyler Linderbaum crossed in front of his boss to keep Chenal away, colliding with the quarterback and knocking the ball loose — just as George Karlaftis and Chris Jones took Jackson to the ground.
While the play was counted as a sack, neither Karlaftis or Jones received credit for it. But linebacker Drue Tranquill got full credit for recovering the fumble — and ending a drive that could have narrowed the Chiefs’ halftime lead.
Each time Kansas City faces Jackson (or running back Derrick Henry), defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo (and his unit’s leaders) all say how much they respect these two players — and how hard they will have to work to contain them.
But while there have been some exceptions, the Chiefs’ defense has generally been able to hold both of them in check. On Sunday, Jackson was 14 of 20 for 147 yards, a touchdown and an interception, which was good for a passer rating of just 86.9. Henry did average 5.3 yards a carry, but collected just 42 yards on eight attempts.
More importantly, Baltimore scored on just four of its 10 drives. The two giveaways accounted for two more. Another ended in a punt, leaving three other drives where the Ravens gave up the ball on downs.
Meanwhile, Kansas City also possessed the ball 10 times. The Chiefs began the game with four consecutive scoring drives — and then ran off three more to begin the second half. Harrison Butker’s missed field goal, Matt Araiza’s only punt (with just 3:29 left in the game) and the final whistle ended the other three.
It’s fine to be concerned about drives that end in field goals instead of touchdowns — and placekickers who sometimes miss long ones. But the Chiefs simply found a way to score on most of their drives.
That’s what championship teams do.
You’re familiar with this season’s prevailing narrative: the Chiefs are trending down. So analysts are likely to say that Kansas City took advantage of the Ravens’ injury-depleted defensive...
