Scouting the Enemy: Kansas City Chiefs

The Denver Broncos are a franchise in despair after starting off the season 1-4. The Kansas City Chiefs are the reigning Super Bowl champions and are currently atop the AFC West with a 4-1 record.

The Chiefs have beaten the Broncos fifteen straight times. In fact, Denver hasn’t defeated Kansas City since 2015. Given the current state of the franchise, it’s really hard to imagine a scenario where the Broncos can break that horrendous streak on Thursday Night Football.

Without further adieu, here is my Scouting the Enemy installment for the Chiefs.

2022 Kansas City Chiefs Review

The Chiefs were 14-3 last season and were the division winners of the AFC West. They went on to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl. Overall, their offense ranked first in points scored and total yardage. Their defense was sixteenth in points and eleventh in yardage allowed.

2023 Offseason Moves and Acquisitions

The Chiefs made a big splash in this past free agency period by signing Jawaan Taylor on a four-year deal worth up to $80 million dollars. They made a bunch of other depth signings, especially on the defensive side of the ball to make their formidable roster even stronger.

Despite picking low in the draft due to winning the Lombardi Trophy, the Chiefs were able to get two top talents with their first two draft selections. Edge rusher Felix Anudike-Uzomah has a chance to become a top-notch pass rusher and wide receiver Rashee Rice should have ample opportunities to demonstrate his playmaking ability in the National Football League catching passes from Patrick Mahomes.

The Chiefs Offensive X-Factor — Patrick Mahomes

This one is easy and quite obvious.

Patrick Mahomes is a Hall of Fame quarterback and easily among if not the best player in the National Football League. Five games into the season and Mahomes has already thrown for nearly 1,300 yards, 10 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Interestingly enough, some would consider those numbers a ‘slow start’ compared to usual—but I’m certainly not going to underestimate his abilities.

As always, he has done a tremendous job spreading the ball around with six players having at least 15 targets and 10 catches on the season. Their offense might be without Tyreek Hill, but the Chiefs have no shortage of weapons in the passing or running game to get involved that have top-notch speed and game-changing ability.

With the Broncos defense being one of the worst in the league, it’s hard to expect Vance Joseph and company will come up with a good enough game plan to keep Kansas City’s prolific offense at bay. I have no doubt Mahomes will carve up the Broncos’ defense and have a great game against them.

The Chiefs Defensive X-Factor — Chris Jones

Denver’s offensive line has struggled to start the season and looked awful in the second half against the New York Jets. They had absolutely no answers for the pressure packages and blitzes Jeff Ulbrich was dialing up on defense. If you thought that was bad, I don’t know if you are ready to witness the pain Chris Jones is about to bring to that unit tomorrow night.

It didn’t even matter that Jones held out all of the off-season. He is still in All-Pro form and showcasing why he is one of the league’s most feared and dominant players in the defensive trenches. In just four games, Jones has 4.5 sacks and 8 quarterback hits. That’s absolutely incredible.

I wouldn’t be surprised if he adds a few more sacks to that total going up against the Broncos’ woeful offensive line. What are the chances that Garett Bolles, Ben Powers, Lloyd Cushenberry, Quinn Meinerz, and Mike McGlinchey actually play well enough as a unit to limit Jones’ impact? Not good.

Do the Broncos have a shot at beating the Chiefs?

Absolutely not. The Chiefs would still beat the Broncos even if the aforementioned Mahomes and Jones weren’t playing tomorrow night. That’s the harsh reality of the situation.

Expect another embarrassment on national television from our boys in orange and blue. A loss will mark sixteen straight games dropped to the Chiefs. I’m not sure if that is some sort of head-to-head record, but it’s easily one of the most shameful stretches of ineptitude I’ve ever witnessed in my entire life of watching football.

Onward to 1-5, Broncos Country! At least we can be happy that the Broncos will get another step closer toward securing a Top 5 selection in the 2023 NFL Draft.