Arrowhead Pride
The controlled chaos of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s scheme helped finish off the AFC Title.
It wasn’t always pretty for the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense in the AFC Championship, countering the Buffalo Bills’ dynamic offense that avoided turning the ball over. The 32-29 final was the result of an epic back-and-forth between arguably the two best quarterbacks in the NFL.
It would always come down to which signal caller got bested by the opposition on a crucial play. The Bills were successful on nine of 16 attempts to convert third or fourth down, but the final go at it made the difference.
Needing five yards to convert, Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen eyes the Chiefs’ defense and sets the protection, sliding blockers to the left toward defensive tackle Chris Jones. He does not anticipate cornerback Trent McDuffie abandoning his coverage alignment and blitzing at the snap, pairing with safety Justin Reid and defensive end George Karlaftis to disrupt Allen’s plan.
The game-long strategy of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo created the opportunity: he saved McDuffie’s only blitz of the evening for the ultimate play. On Thursday, McDuffie talked with reporters about the thought process leading to the memorable stop.
“Whenever coach Spags calls a blitz, I’m usually pretty confident,” McDuffie began during his press conference. “Especially late in the games, he does it very well where you never know what side the blitz is coming... I heard the [offensive] linemen actually check the protection the other way, and right after that, I was like, ‘We got them.’”
McDuffie’s confidence in the moment was built from years of experience in Spagnuolo’s system. It was not the first time a blitz has helped clinch a victory, and it definitely won’t be the last. Justin Reid has absorbed an endless catalog of pass-rush schemes from Spags, and that comes with the territory in Kansas City.
“My first year here,” Reid reflected during his press conference on Thursday. “The amount of different pressures and cover zeroes, simulated pressures, the sheer volume of it was like ‘woah. This is really deep, and I haven’t been a part of something like this before.’”
“As you get a ton of reps at it and you start to get a feel for the defense, you start building your confidence in it... you’re almost hungry for it,” Reid emphasized. “You’re like, ‘Yeah, let’s put in more. Let’s put in something that someone hasn’t seen.’ He keeps building that arsenal, and he’s able to pull from it whenever he wants.”
That hunger can come across as excitement for the blitz call as well. McDuffie gets almost too happy to hear his name called for pass rush.
“I always tell people ‘I have the biggest smile on my face when I’m blitzing,’” McDuffie shared with reporters. “That’s my dead giveaway if you line up against me.
“When you blitz, there are holes in the defense. Some guys may be put in awkward situations, so whenever [Spagnuolo] sends a blitz with the game on...
