Tweet
You guys know the drill how this works. This is for the season's 2nd half (aka...the final 8 games). PFF provides the criteria and hardwork we use to summarize and base our thoughts off of.
And with that, the Chiefs game grades are out...
Starting on OFFENSE, there was not a single negative grade to be seen. I'm not sure that has been done by any team up to this point so far this season. Our WRs were again stellar, lead as usual by Lloyd (+3.1) while the lowest graded player at the position, Royal (+1.1), still was very effective. This is nothing new though, so great play from our WRs was not the defining factor in our blowout. Kyle Orton (+3.6) also continued his excellent play, this also was not a key factor is why our offense suddenly clicked. Moreno only graded out as a (+0.2) rushing, he's done that several times this season. He had a very high (+1.7) receiving grade, and a great (+2.3) overall, for easily his best all-around game this season, but he has been dominant in the passing game. This was just the first game he ran well and caught well. So, while a factor in our offensive success, I don't think it's the key breakout component.
On to those key breakout factors. I've determined there were two primary catalysts. The first, obviously, being the vastly improved play of the O-line. Oddly enough, since our running game was effective, only one O-lineman graded out well in run blocking. That being the human bulldozer, at least for this game, Zane Beadles. With a (+1.8) run blocking grade, by far his best of his career, he dominated in the trenches at LG. Conversely, the next highest Bronco in run blocking was Ryan Clady (+0.4). The other linemen had slightly negative grades, with Walton (-1.0) the worst. Where the line really excelled was in pass blocking, they flatout dominated, led by Clady (+2.1). Everyone had a good game, the worst "good game" being by Beadles (+0.4). Only two QB pressures were given up all game, 1 by Beadles, 1 by Harris. No QB Hits, no Sacks. So, even though we had our best running game of the season, the O-line wasn't overly responsible, neither was Moreno. Both were key contributors, obviously, but if they weren't the catalyst for our running breakout, whom was? (Revealed Shortly). What the O-line was the catalyst for was the lack of negative plays. We didn't have long down and distances for Orton, and he lit up the Chiefs. We didn't have long down and distances for Moreno, and he lit up the Chiefs. We didn't have that one guy completely ruin our offensive gameplan like we have every game this season. Nobody was a goat. That was the difference up front, it wasn't sheer dominance, it was simply avoiding boneheaded mistakes. That was catalyst #1.
The second catalyst, briefly referred to earlier, is responsible for our running game rising from the hidden depths of Atlantis. That catalyst is the dynamic run blocking by our Tight Ends and Fullbacks. Spencer Larsen lead the way with a (+1.3) run blocking grade. His previous high of the season? (+0.1). MASSIVE improvement. Dan Gronkowski continued his excellent play, logging a hefty 47 snaps (to Graham's 50), and outperforming Graham across the board once again. His run blocking grade of (+1.2) is the second game in a row he has hit that lofty of a mark. Gronkowski has the makings of being a legit #1 TE in our style of offense, and certainly an elite #2. The Alphonso Smith trade looks like we got the short end of the stick still, but it's not going to be a terrible trade in the end. Gronkowski looks like he is for real. Richard Quinn finally played, logging 16 snaps, double his previous high for a game this season, and graded out an excellent (+0.9) in run blocking. Finally, Daniel Graham brought up the rear (+0.2), BUT that was BY FAR his highest run blocking grade in the previous 7 games. So, while the O-line was stellar pass blocking and roughly average run blocking, the ancillary parts (TE and FB) are the reason Moreno hit 100 yards finally. Basically, our TEs and FBs finally did what they are supposed to do in our scheme....block people.
Now, on Defense...
With the Chiefs in pass catch-up mode, the running game was largely abandoned. That resulted in a season low of 21 snaps for Jamal Williams. Oddly enough, he had his best game of the season by a mile (+2.4), with a ridiculous (+2.9) vs the run. Kevin Vickerson was our next best lineman, checking in with a solid (+1.5) overall, (+1.4) against the run, on 33 snaps from his RE position. This was in perfect contrast to his rotation mate, Ryan McBean, whom had a (-1.5) overall, and a fancy (0.0) against the run. He is...a waste of space. Justin Bannan, whom bounced around from LE to NT, had a typically bad game, though his (-1.1) vs. the run was one of his better marks this season. As of now, he has been a Free Agent bust despite logging a ton of snaps. Ronald Fields also logged 20 snaps at NT, finishing roughly average across the board. Finally, Marcus Thomas had an off day (for him, it would be a career day for Bannan). He finished (+0.4) vs the run but (-0.4) overall.
At LB, Mario Haggan led the way with excellent all-around play, finishing with a (+2.2). Jason Hunter and DJ Williams both played roughly average overall, though with Hunter excelling in pass coverage (+1.1), while DJ excelled against the run (+1.7). Neither were very effective on the pass rush. Joe Mays was dominant against the run (+2.4), but finished with a (-0.5) due to a bad penalty grade. He only played 33 snaps, but had 8 tackles in that time. Ridiculous ratio. Jarvis Moss logged 19 snaps, rushed 14 of them, and predictably did nothing. (-1.1) grade.
In the secondary, Champ wasn't hit as hard as I was expecting. I think they took into account the prevent defense and didn't grade negatively if someone caught it in front. Still, he finished with his worst grade of the season (-0.6), with a (-1.0) in coverage. Perrish Cox also had his worst grade of the season in coverage (-1.5). And...Nathan Jones had his worst grade of the season in coverage with a (-1.5) also. Finally, at CB, Syd'Quan, whom logged a season high 33 snaps, finished with a (-0.2) in coverage, the best of all our CBs. At Safety, Darcel McBath was the best with a (+0.7) overall, (+1.0) in coverage on 60 snaps. Renaldo Hill was right behind him with a (+0.4) overall, mostly off a strong (+0.7) in run defense. Hill had a (-0.2) in pass defense. Bruton and McCarthy barely played. Bruton, as usual, blitzed on half of his plays. If he's in the game, it's literally a 50/50 chance he's blitzing. With Dawkins, it's more a 20% chance of a blitz. Speaking of whom, Dawkins had his first really clunker of a game this season (-2.4) due to ineffective blitzing and a (-1.5) in coverage. The struggles in coverage being nothing new to Dawkins throughout his career.
And with that, the Chiefs game grades are out...
Starting on OFFENSE, there was not a single negative grade to be seen. I'm not sure that has been done by any team up to this point so far this season. Our WRs were again stellar, lead as usual by Lloyd (+3.1) while the lowest graded player at the position, Royal (+1.1), still was very effective. This is nothing new though, so great play from our WRs was not the defining factor in our blowout. Kyle Orton (+3.6) also continued his excellent play, this also was not a key factor is why our offense suddenly clicked. Moreno only graded out as a (+0.2) rushing, he's done that several times this season. He had a very high (+1.7) receiving grade, and a great (+2.3) overall, for easily his best all-around game this season, but he has been dominant in the passing game. This was just the first game he ran well and caught well. So, while a factor in our offensive success, I don't think it's the key breakout component.
On to those key breakout factors. I've determined there were two primary catalysts. The first, obviously, being the vastly improved play of the O-line. Oddly enough, since our running game was effective, only one O-lineman graded out well in run blocking. That being the human bulldozer, at least for this game, Zane Beadles. With a (+1.8) run blocking grade, by far his best of his career, he dominated in the trenches at LG. Conversely, the next highest Bronco in run blocking was Ryan Clady (+0.4). The other linemen had slightly negative grades, with Walton (-1.0) the worst. Where the line really excelled was in pass blocking, they flatout dominated, led by Clady (+2.1). Everyone had a good game, the worst "good game" being by Beadles (+0.4). Only two QB pressures were given up all game, 1 by Beadles, 1 by Harris. No QB Hits, no Sacks. So, even though we had our best running game of the season, the O-line wasn't overly responsible, neither was Moreno. Both were key contributors, obviously, but if they weren't the catalyst for our running breakout, whom was? (Revealed Shortly). What the O-line was the catalyst for was the lack of negative plays. We didn't have long down and distances for Orton, and he lit up the Chiefs. We didn't have long down and distances for Moreno, and he lit up the Chiefs. We didn't have that one guy completely ruin our offensive gameplan like we have every game this season. Nobody was a goat. That was the difference up front, it wasn't sheer dominance, it was simply avoiding boneheaded mistakes. That was catalyst #1.
The second catalyst, briefly referred to earlier, is responsible for our running game rising from the hidden depths of Atlantis. That catalyst is the dynamic run blocking by our Tight Ends and Fullbacks. Spencer Larsen lead the way with a (+1.3) run blocking grade. His previous high of the season? (+0.1). MASSIVE improvement. Dan Gronkowski continued his excellent play, logging a hefty 47 snaps (to Graham's 50), and outperforming Graham across the board once again. His run blocking grade of (+1.2) is the second game in a row he has hit that lofty of a mark. Gronkowski has the makings of being a legit #1 TE in our style of offense, and certainly an elite #2. The Alphonso Smith trade looks like we got the short end of the stick still, but it's not going to be a terrible trade in the end. Gronkowski looks like he is for real. Richard Quinn finally played, logging 16 snaps, double his previous high for a game this season, and graded out an excellent (+0.9) in run blocking. Finally, Daniel Graham brought up the rear (+0.2), BUT that was BY FAR his highest run blocking grade in the previous 7 games. So, while the O-line was stellar pass blocking and roughly average run blocking, the ancillary parts (TE and FB) are the reason Moreno hit 100 yards finally. Basically, our TEs and FBs finally did what they are supposed to do in our scheme....block people.
Now, on Defense...
With the Chiefs in pass catch-up mode, the running game was largely abandoned. That resulted in a season low of 21 snaps for Jamal Williams. Oddly enough, he had his best game of the season by a mile (+2.4), with a ridiculous (+2.9) vs the run. Kevin Vickerson was our next best lineman, checking in with a solid (+1.5) overall, (+1.4) against the run, on 33 snaps from his RE position. This was in perfect contrast to his rotation mate, Ryan McBean, whom had a (-1.5) overall, and a fancy (0.0) against the run. He is...a waste of space. Justin Bannan, whom bounced around from LE to NT, had a typically bad game, though his (-1.1) vs. the run was one of his better marks this season. As of now, he has been a Free Agent bust despite logging a ton of snaps. Ronald Fields also logged 20 snaps at NT, finishing roughly average across the board. Finally, Marcus Thomas had an off day (for him, it would be a career day for Bannan). He finished (+0.4) vs the run but (-0.4) overall.
At LB, Mario Haggan led the way with excellent all-around play, finishing with a (+2.2). Jason Hunter and DJ Williams both played roughly average overall, though with Hunter excelling in pass coverage (+1.1), while DJ excelled against the run (+1.7). Neither were very effective on the pass rush. Joe Mays was dominant against the run (+2.4), but finished with a (-0.5) due to a bad penalty grade. He only played 33 snaps, but had 8 tackles in that time. Ridiculous ratio. Jarvis Moss logged 19 snaps, rushed 14 of them, and predictably did nothing. (-1.1) grade.
In the secondary, Champ wasn't hit as hard as I was expecting. I think they took into account the prevent defense and didn't grade negatively if someone caught it in front. Still, he finished with his worst grade of the season (-0.6), with a (-1.0) in coverage. Perrish Cox also had his worst grade of the season in coverage (-1.5). And...Nathan Jones had his worst grade of the season in coverage with a (-1.5) also. Finally, at CB, Syd'Quan, whom logged a season high 33 snaps, finished with a (-0.2) in coverage, the best of all our CBs. At Safety, Darcel McBath was the best with a (+0.7) overall, (+1.0) in coverage on 60 snaps. Renaldo Hill was right behind him with a (+0.4) overall, mostly off a strong (+0.7) in run defense. Hill had a (-0.2) in pass defense. Bruton and McCarthy barely played. Bruton, as usual, blitzed on half of his plays. If he's in the game, it's literally a 50/50 chance he's blitzing. With Dawkins, it's more a 20% chance of a blitz. Speaking of whom, Dawkins had his first really clunker of a game this season (-2.4) due to ineffective blitzing and a (-1.5) in coverage. The struggles in coverage being nothing new to Dawkins throughout his career.
Comment