Are the Chiefs legit
Alex Smith has the Kansas City Chiefs atop the AFC standings, tied with New England and Oakland, with a 7-2 record.
Heading into the second half of the NFL season, from all media sources, you would think the race for the Super Bowl is a two-horse race. The Cowboys are running away with the NFC, and the Patriots, despite an uncharacteristic loss to the Seahawks, appear to be everyone' favorite in the AFC. Reach a tiny bit deeper and NFL pulse is suddenly in love with the rising Oakland Raiders.
What about the Chiefs?
Aren't they the team that rocked Oakland, in Oakland a few weeks back?
Aren't they the team that won ten straight to close the season and 15 of their last regular season games?
And yet it just seems like everyone is waiting for the Chiefs to fade, like they don't belong in the conversation because somehow we've seen this show before.
Man, ya look at those offensive numbers and everything is just ho-hum.
Points - 22.8(18th), YDS - 332.8(26th), PASS YDS - 233.1(22nd), RUSH YDS - 99.7 (20th)
Weapons, but noone really takes your breath away statistically...Alex Smith - 1800 yards, 8 TD's, 3 int's, Kelce - 466 and 3 TD's, Tyreek Hill 300 yards and 4 TD's, Maclin 376 and 2 TD's, RB Spencer Ware 562 yards and 2 TD's
Pretty pedestrian stuff for a 7-2 team, defense must be legit?
Hmmmm, where is it coming from then? Defense must be great right?
Eh...Overall rank 18th, sacks 19th...
Turnovers: The Chiefs lead the NFL with 13 intercepted passes and are second with nine fumble recoveries. Not surprising then that the Chiefs lead the league in turnover differential at +14.
Seems like there is a little something to this year's team, fighting back from a 17-3 deficit heading into the 4th quarter, @ Carolina on Sunday. That said, a couple of bad losses to the Texans and a blowout, 44-13 loss to the Steelers. A lot of close games in there, against some so-so competition...and yet, they destroyed the Raiders and the Colts....
On the fence here, can't decide if I'm buying or selling the Chiefs as legitimate title contenders. You get the feeling they don't have the firepower to compete with a New England that's firing on all cylinders. You get the feeling the defense isn't great, but somewhat opportunistic. That Chiefs defense is getting some players back so that unit should get better.
Clearly the Chiefs margin of error isn't as great as let's say New England. The Patriots could lose a few and still make the show, the Chiefs, they might need home field throughout!
