Early in the 2019 season, the Kansas City Chiefs struggled to stop the run. They allowed 180 or more rushing yards in four consecutive games. It was a problem that looked to be the Achilles heel of this defensive unit.

Over the course of the past several weeks, they’ve become much more stout up front against the run. That includes holding Vikings RB Dalvin Cook, who was then the NFL’s leading rusher, under 100 yards with a long run of just 12 yards.

Part of the defensive resurgence has come from improved play from second-year defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi. He’s been really solid for the Chiefs as the season has progressed, playing with more violence, speed and momentum. Steve Spagnuolo credits Brendan Daly and Nnadi’s ability to embrace the defensive coaching for the improvements.

“He has been a real pro,” Spagnuolo said. “Second-year, you get their rookie mistakes out of the way in the first year. I think he has found comfort in the fact that he is a starter. He plays a lot of reps, so he gets a lot of work at things. I really think that (Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach) Brendan Daly has done a great job with him. That’s a two-way street because Derrick really has embraced the coaching from Coach Daly. I think he gets better and better every week. He has been really solid for us.”

Nnadi wasn’t exactly a household name when Spagnuolo took the job, but he’s quickly becoming an immovable force that teams will have to prepare for. On the season he has 36 tackles, which is good for the fifth-most on the defense.

It helps that he’s bought into the coaching and a defensive system that is now finding more success as a whole. For Nnadi, the most recent success against the Vikings came from winning matchups against their offensive line.

“We were just playing our keys, from being scoots to slips,” Nnadi said following the game. “Just playing as a D-lineman, your first opponent is the offensive line. If you can beat the offensive line, you can stop the run, point-blank.”

If Nnadi can continue to work toward winning those matchups with the offensive line, he’ll continue playing an important role in stopping the run in Kansas City.