The Kansas City Chiefs have once again crawled their back to .500 after a 1-2 start to their season. A Week 9 bout against an Aaron Rodgers-less Packers should be a great opportunity to get above .500 for the first time since they started the season 1-0.
The Packers are 7-1 after beating the undefeated Arizona Cardinals on Thursday Night Football last week. They lead their division and are again a contender in the NFC after their Championship game appearance last season. Capturing a decisive win against a fellow Super Bowl contender who has played well all season would do wonders for Kansas City’s confidence moving forward.
Let’s take a look at two Chiefs dreams and one Packers nightmare in Week 9.
The Chiefs’ offense finally plays to their ability
Turnovers have kept the Chiefs from being 4-2 or even 5-1 at this point in the season.
Their offense nearly let the game get out of hand last week against the New York Giants, with multiple drives ending short or coming up empty. The worst of it was the Chiefs’ first drive of the game. They were in the red zone, on the doorstep of righting their offensive mistakes, and Mahomes threw a jump-pass interception.
Granted, the pick did bounce off of Jerick McKinnon’s facemask on its way to the intended target, Josh Gordon. However, Mahomes turning it into a jump pass didn’t help. The Chiefs will need to score points without Rodgers in this game and not provide Aaron Jones and Davante Adams extra opportunities to cause damage.
Kansas City received some help in the standings, with multiple AFC contenders taking losses over the past few weeks. However, if the Chiefs are going to improve to 5-4, it starts with a clean outing against the Packers.
Kansas City’s defense goes after Jordan Love
The Kansas City defense can breathe a sigh of relief knowing they don’t have to face last year’s MVP, Aaron Rodgers. However, this Packers team didn’t get to 7-1 without having playmakers.
Jones and Adams will get their touches no matter who is under center, and the Chiefs have to limit the Packers’ offense to field goals to stay in this game. Should the offense stumble, the defense will be called upon to carry more of the load and will have to make their chances count against a short-handed Packers offense.
With the addition of Melvin Ingram last week and Andy Reid said he will see playing time this coming Sunday. We should expect the Kansas City defense to come after the inexperienced signal-caller. After producing multiple sacks against the Giants, and with a new pass-rusher to boot, this defensive front should be looking to get home on Sunday.
The Chiefs’ defense can’t hang with the Packers’ weapons
With the Packers boasting one of the league’s best wide receivers and running backs, the Chiefs will have their work cut out for them on defense. Aaron Jones could be a problem for the Chiefs linebackers and secondary in both the running and passing games. A top-15 running back in terms of yardage, Jones presents an issue for one of the worst defenses in the NFL. With multiple games of 100-plus yards combined rushing/receiving, Jones could be the catalyst for a challenging game for the KC defense.
With Adams’ continued success on the outside, he will surely give this Chiefs secondary issues, especially if he sees man coverage on a blitz. Adams has collected yards in bunches and is fourth in receiving yards this season. However, there is less consistency amongst Green Bay’s remaining options after Adams and Jones.
Should they get open early and keep it close, it’s hard to bet on the Chiefs’ defense to make in-game adjustments and hold back some of the league’s best weapons — even with a backup quarterback under center.
