Five things you need to know about this week’s opponent, the Kansas City Chiefs
I’m not sure if it is a blessing from the NFL schedule gods or just sheer luck, but here we are with a big Sunday night game in Seattle right before Christmas.
You’ve got a team on the verge of being the top seed in the AFC against a team that has surprised some football experts this season. Before we slide into Sunday like Cris Collinsworth, here’s five things you need to know about this week’s Seahawks opponent, the Kansas City Chiefs.
Patrick Mahomes’ historic season
The Chiefs got their man in the 2017 NFL draft after going over 30 years since drafting a quarterback in the first round (Todd Blackledge, 1983). In his second season in the league and first as a starter, Patrick Mahomes has put together a memorable season. To put Mahomes’ season in historical context, here’s a look at his numbers thourgh 14 games.
Passing Yards
Dan Marino (1984): 5,084
Patrick Mahomes (2018): 4,543
(In Marino’s second season he became the first quarterback to pass for more than 5,000 yards in a season.)
Touchdowns
Peyton Manning (2013): 55
Tom Brady (2007): 50
Patrick Mahomes (2018): 45
(Mahomes if five away from becoming the third player in NFL history with a 50-TD season.)
Yes, the passing game has evolved over the past 10-15 seasons but there is still something special about what Mahomes is doing in just his second year in the league.
Hello, old friend
Before the NFL’s realignment in 2002, the Chiefs and Seahawks were part of the ever-entertaining AFC West. The two teams went to battle every year from 1977 to 2002, and the Chiefs currently hold a 33-18 edge over the Seahawks all-time.
One of the greatest games in this rivalry occurred in 1990, a 17-16 Seattle victory in Kansas City. Chiefs linebacker Derrick Thomas sacked Seahawks quarterback Dave Krieg seven times, but Krieg threw a game-winning touchdown pass on the last play of the game as he evaded sack number eight from Thomas.
The Chiefs’ defense, or lack thereof...
There are a few things you can say about the Chiefs’ defense, not many of them are actually good.
For all the good that the Kansas City offense has provided in 2018, the defense has provided the bad and the ugly with 42.1 percent of opponents drives ending in a score of some kind. So if you’re of the betting kind, you could be tempted to the bet the over on Sunday night’s game (54 for those wondering).
The Chiefs give up the most yards per rushing attempt with five yards per carry. With Seattle’s commitment to the ground game, we could see the Hawks backs have a big night.
More Berry this week?
If the Chiefs are going to get a boost this week, it may come from Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry, who played his first game of the season last week against the Chargers. It was his first action since suffering serious heel and Achilles injuries in week one of last season. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid discussed the possibility of seeing Berry on the field more come Sunday night.
“We’ll see how that goes,” Reid told the media on Monday. “He’ll continue to increase time and we’ll see how that disperses out there and what the plan will be for this coming week. The positive was that he came out feeling good. He was sore — he hadn’t played in a long time.”
Reid bound for rarefied air?
Kansas City currently sits in the top spot in the AFC playoff picture and if the Chiefs were to reach the franchise’s first Super Bowl since the 1969 season, Andy Reid would be on a historical list. He would be one of seven head coaches to take two teams to the Super Bowl.
The other six are Don Shula, Bill Parcells, Mike Holmgren, Dan Reeves, Dick Vermeil and John Fox.
First the Chiefs have to reach the Super Bowl. And if you’re wondering, the Chiefs have not reached the AFC title game since January of 1994.
This story was originally published December 18, 2018 at 2:44 PM.