I really feel like you could break down just about any play from Kansas City and it’d look impressive. It’s like breaking down a scene in the godfather, or explaining why a puppy’s cute. (Unless you’re a fan of the Broncos, then it’s like breaking down the time you drunkenly hooked up with your ex, you’d rather just pretend it never happened). Here, Denver’s going to be playing a 3-4 over, cover 1 contain. This is a man coverage scheme, where the Broncos will sent 5 to the quarterback, and have just one safety back. Kansas City has most of their players in the middle of the field, and since Denver does as well, it’s a sign they’re playing man. Tyreek Hill’s going to be put in motion, and since a cornerback follows him, Kansas City can be pretty sure Denver’s playing man.

This is a run pass option for Kansas City, but with the pressure Denver’s bringing, it’d be a mistake to run the ball. The middle of the field’s wide open, and Patrick Mahomes makes the correct read, as he hits Hill who’s running a crossing route. With Hill’s speed in a one on one coverage, it’s a matchup you’re going to want to go to as often as possible, and this time is resulted in a big gain.

This is another run pass option, and I think this one perfectly encapsulates how they can be so successful. Here Travis Kelce’s in motion, and Broncos linebacker Todd Davis follows him, singling to the Chiefs that Denver’s playing man coverage.

The most important player to look at on this play is Todd Davis, who I’ve circled. His assignment is to cover Kelce, however if he leaves to cover Kelce, it’ll mean Kareem Hunt will only have to get past one linebacker to make a big gain.

Davis waits too long, and by the time he realizes it’s not a run, he’s way out of position, and Kelce’s open for a big gain. It’s probably a mistake by Davis, but that’s what plays like this are supposed to do, force opposing players to make decisions, and when you have to make decisions, some of which will be mistakes.

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Speaking of mistakes, this is just a blown coverage by Kansas City. They’re running a cover 2 man out of a big nickel. With only 12 seconds left in the half, all the Chiefs really have to worry about is keeping the ball out of the endzone. However it appears that Kansas City is expecting Denver to just try to get more yards to make a field goal attempt easier.

There were 2 mistakes made here, first their safety Ron Parker (guy in the circle) is going to focus on Broncos tight end Jeff Heuerman. In fairness to Parker, his job is to help cover who he think is more open, and he feels as though the pass is going to Heuerman. He guessed wrong, but that’s a forgivable error.

The bigger mistake was by Orlando Scandrick ( guy who’s double circled). He was under the impression that Kansas City was playing a zone coverage on this play. Scandrick’s supposed to be covering Tim Patrick, but since he thinks they’re playing zone, he let’s Patrick go past him, assuming Parker would pick him up. However Parker had already come in to help cover Heuerman, and Tim Patrick wide open. (But on the bright side, Heuerman was triple covered so there’s that).

This is the defensive play for Kansas City. It’s obviously a cover 0 since they’re in a goal line situation, and they’re going to be playing man coverage, with 2 linebackers in zone. This means they’re only going to rush 4, which will force Keenum to make a throw.

Denver has a lot of routes designed for quick passes, which makes sense, as they don’t know if Kansas City’s going to be blitzing or not.

Since the Chiefs aren’t blitzing, they have a lot of players back in coverage, creating a very tight window for throw to. But on a fourth down, an interception’s as bad as an incompletion, and so Keenum goes for it. He ends up throwing a perfect pass, and it results in a touchdown.

Kansas City has one of the most exciting offenses in the league, and it’s the kind of team you’re going to want to watch in person. SeatGeek has tickets going for under $50, for multiple games including their December 13th match-up against the Chargers, who are currently 5-2. If you purchase tickets by clicking the link below, it helps me continue to make these breakdowns, and it’s very appreciated.

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