Arrowhead Pride
The Kansas City Chiefs lost their preseason finale against the Chicago Bears 29-27 on Friday night, but the Chiefs’ starters looked sound.
The starting offense played for three drives, scoring three times and looking like a finely tuned machine.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw for 143 yards and a touchdown, while running back Isaiah Pacheco ran for 21 yards on only three handoffs and a touchdown.
The offense was as efficient as it could be — and in large part, this was due to the performance of the offensive line.
The unit has had a microscope on it ever since the disaster of Super Bowl LIX. Training camp’s hottest stories were about the play of rookie left tackle Josh Simmons and the transition of second-year player Kingsley Suamataia’s to left guard.
After a rough game a week ago in Seattle, the unit needed a good bounce-back that could boost its confidence before the regular season — and it got just that.
It’s no secret: the Chiefs want to get back to throwing the ball downfield, creating the explosive plays the offense has lacked during the last two seasons. With the development of Xavier Worthy (and the addition of Tyqaun Thornton), it looks like the Chiefs might have found two players who can stretch the field.
While having these speedy wideouts is important, the pass protection must be there to give Mahomes time to throw — and on Friday, it was.
On this play, the Chiefs’ offensive line holds up against the Bears’ four-man pass rush. Right tackle Jawaan Taylor and right guard Trey Smith are solo against the defensive end and defensive tackle, while center Creed Humphrey slides left toward Suamataia and the nose tackle. Simmons is one-on-one at left tackle, but will have inside help from Suamataia should the rusher go to the B-gap.
After tight end Travis Kelce’s chip block, the defensive end tries rushing inside — but Simmons powers down on him, running him into the nose tackle. At the end of the play, Smith gives up a little pressure — but Mahomes still has more than enough time to fire a bomb downfield to Thornton. As he throws, Mahomes’ feet are set — and he shows good mechanics on his follow-through. Without good pass protection, none of that is possible.
That continued through the first quarter. While Chicago tried a few five-man pressures against Mahomes, the line still gave him the time he needed.
Here we see Simmons effortlessly go into his drive-and-catch, firing his hand inside to shut down the pass rush. Humphrey and Suamtatia slam the interior defensive linemen into each other as they attempt a twist, stopping the pass rush in its tracks. Taylor and Smith are solid on the right. Mahomes has all day to find running back Brashard Smith over the middle.
While these clean pockets allowed Mahomes the time he needed to make quick work of the Bears’ defense, it also gave him more time to improvise when...
