AFC Game Of The Week
Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Chargers
Chiefs: They are back atop the AFC with the top record. Tell me if you’ve heard this before. I understand there was some uncertainty surrounding them after trading Tyreek Hill during the off-season. Here’s the thing. This team will forever be in contention if Patrick Mahomes is under center and he’s showing why he is the best Quarterback in the league at this moment. Because of Josh Allen’s inconsistent play as of late, Patrick has now become the favorite to win the league MVP. If I’m being honest, I like this Chiefs offense more than I did the ones with Tyreek and of course, I’ll explain what I mean. When you played those teams, there were two guys you had to worry about. That was Cheetah (Tyreek) and as always, Travis Kelce. After those two, who was that one piece that stood out and grabbed your attention? Now, I feel there’s more depth within the Kansas City offense now. Of course, Kelce is still Kelce, but I look at some of the other receivers who have also been putting it together such as Kadarius Toney and wait until he’s more comfortable within the offense, Marques Valdez-Scantling and Juju Smith-Schuster before he got hurt. They are rolling right now and I’m enjoying how much of a mature Quarterback Patrick has become. He isn’t forcing the football down the field which would get him in trouble. Now, he takes what a defense gives him. The Chiefs are in a prime position right now. They’re in first place in the AFC West and if the playoffs were to begin today, the road to Arizona in the AFC would travel through Arrowhead. On Sunday night, they’ll face a division rival once again.
Chargers: They won the off-season and were supposed to contend for the division this year. I remember that’s what people were saying when they made the free agent signings and trades. One thing about this sport is the injury bug is going to come or it won’t. They haven’t been so lucky to avoid it because injuries have crushed this team and have sidelined some key players. Everyone wants to say Justin Herbert is regressing this year, but he’s been without key weapons for most of the season. Keenan Allen when healthy is a huge difference maker. He stretches the field vertically and he can also go over the middle to make a catch in traffic. Justin has also been without Mike Williams who’s become his top target. Being healthy makes all the difference in the world. The Chargers defense hasn’t been what it was all cracked up to be. They’re awful at stopping the run and they can’t get off the field on third down. In the first half of that game against the 49ers, I like what I saw. They were establishing Austin Ekeler and taking shots down the field because of play action. In the second half, they were shut out and I didn’t see them make any type of adjustments. This offense can’t seem to get much of anything going, but that’s to be expected when you’re missing key elements of your offensive gameplan. As I always say, being healthy makes an immense difference. They return home looking to get right against the Chiefs on Sunday night.
Chiefs X-Factor– Isiah Pacheco: I like the element he brings to this Kansas City offense. Isiah is a shifty, yet downhill runner that wants to earn those hard-fought yards. I first noticed him earlier in the year when the Chiefs played the Buccaneers. They kept feeding him the ball and he had a strong impact. Isiah can either bounce outside of the tackles and get to the perimeter or he can run through the lanes with a full head of steam. He reminds me of Philip Lindsay.
Chargers X-Factor: Gerald Everett– I feel he’s the forgotten piece of this LA offense at times. This is another weapon for Justin Herbert. Gerald is a Wide Receiver stuck in the body of a Tight End because he does many things that Wide Receivers do such as moving the chains, moving well with the football in his hands and he can also catch screen passes. Gerald is a lot quicker than he’s given credit for.
Final Thoughts: This has been a fun matchup to watch in the last year. The last four battles between these two have been decided by single digits. When these two last met, it was in week two and that was the game that showed me the Chargers still aren’t ready for the big moment. They were up by ten points, which means you’re allowing the Chiefs to hang around. They never put them away. Weeks later, here we are. The number one thing the Chargers must do is double Travis Kelce, especially in the red area of the field. This is who Patrick is going to target any chance he can get. Can this defensive line get home to Mahomes? The key in slowing this Quarterback down is to hit him behind the Line of Scrimmage. If you don’t hit him, he’ll have all day to throw the ball and pick your secondary apart. Despite all the injuries on the Chargers side, I still expect Mahomes and Herbert to put on a show.
Prediction: Chiefs 30, Chargers 21
