But I am now officially concerned. What is going on with this team? I do think, however, about the many times the Chiefs have had grave disappointments mid-season but we've come back and been amazing. And I didn't think the Carolina game would be a pushover game by any means.
Still I do think our injuries have hurt us more than we think. I truly believe the biggest loss was that of Rashee Rice. It didn't help that we lost Marquise Brown after the very first play of the preseason.
On the other hand, picking up DeAndre Hopkins was a coup, and getting Noah Gray (another fine Veach draft selection) in the mix have helped a ton, especially in this game. Of course Kareem Hunt has been a godsend, but as we all know he simply cannot carry the whole load. He's got to be exhausted with how much we've been giving him the rock.
I am also concerned about Andy Reid -- it just seems he's gotten back to being too conservative with his play-calling especially late in a game. Come on, you've got Mahomes, and D-Hop, and Kareem and Samaje for great screen action, and Gray who'd been great today, and Travis, and...
Putting the hammer down like we should? Today we were up 20-6, and again later in the game 27-16 -- annnd we let them back in it.
Why is Patrick getting sacked at any point in this game, like he did twice when we could have put the game away with just a few minutes left? And once during the drive before that putting us out of FG range? You really want to blame our tackles? Again, please. Sorry, but that is on Andy. He can do it, he always has -- he can make plays that work.
And defensively? By the time the 4th quarter got going -- Carolina had six possessions and got five scores each time? They stormed down the field late and got the TD and 2-point conversion they needed to tie it. One could easily make the argument that the loss of Jaylen Watson to injury was the most impactful. I wouldn't argue against that, actually. It seems to be really hard to find good solid cover guys, and when you get a major gouge in your secondary it can be very bad.
Thing is, with less than a minute left and the ball, Patrick did rescue us from all this by making a spectacular scrambling run for 30-something yards to get us safely in FG range to snatch up this win.
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I wanted to take a moment to share some thoughts about all the penalties. It does seem like every other play includes some yellow flag thrown. Too many penalties just makes the games drag. We can easily say it is the players' fault for just not following the rules and doing bad things on the field causing all the flags.
Particularly troubling are the flags thrown for passing and catching plays, namely those pass interferences and holding calls on pass defenders. One of the problems is the interpretations of what those are, and really, half the time you wonder. Either it was so blatant but not called, or it was barely anything and it was called. (And yes, the Chiefs don't get favored with those kinds of calls, especially in today's game...)
One pundit, I think it was Trey Wingo, pointed out in a social media post that the officials on the field are seeing the game in a linear fashion, while we are all watching in 360 degree digital. Absolutely. Somewhere else it was pointed out that the Chiefs had been asking for more attention from officials "in the sky" for some time. They are just starting to get around to doing that, and yes, just getting the call correct.
But it isn't enough. I really think there should be changes in the rules with regards to the passing game on the field. Consider the following.
After five yards off the line, defenders cannot touch at all any eligible receiver. No touching at all, meaning no jostling, no hands lifted up on the body in any way. If it is incidental such as the receiver happens to touch the defender while on his route that can be allowed, but really, for the most part:
HANDS OFF.
Totally. No reaching out or touching the opposing player, on either side. Don't even bump the player before the ball arrives unless you are clearly in a position to play the ball.
If you don't keep off, it is a penalty.
It may be said this will increase penalties. Hold on, just a minute. There is more.
The penalty should be much more severe, in a number of ways.
One, get the "interpretation" from the official in the booth, or in New York, or wherever. Again, let the people who see the game on the monitor from the 360 perspective make the call. Communication technology is so advanced officials on the field can get word when there is really a penalty.
Two, if a receiver has gone past the defender and he is PI'ed or held, put the ball at the one yard-line. This is kind-of the same as the breakaway rule in the NBA for a player clear to make a dunk and he is impeded deliberately to keep him from scoring. This should prevent all the contact that mess with the big explosive pass plays we all like to see.
Three, the one that I think will do the most to empower the players to not commit the penalties we are so tired of seeing: if a player gets flagged for two such fouls, they are ejected from the game. I know this sounds excessive, but if you want the players to be incentivized to not make those penalties on those pass plays, then mean business about it. Again, take a page from the NBA. Players there must take a seat if they commit too many fouls. Let's do this in the NFL. In fact, it would be much easier for them to just back off and play the passed ball.
Just play the game.
It may be said "But so many scores will be 57-54!"
Awesome. What is wrong with that? As it is too many games are 10-6, defenses are too unnecessarily aggressive, they get away with too much, and penalty flags fly left and right. If your defenders are good, they'll play the ball, not impede the receivers. If your players are smart and good enough, they'll play with the best they can bring and not commit stupid penalties costing their teams games when they get ejected for them.
And really, this applies to offensive linemen holding. This actually helps the defenses! The number of times I see offensive linemen hold and it isn't called. On the other hand, stop calling phantom holds, like the Chiefs got last week in the Bills game. Critical holding call against us helped them in a major way when the D-lineman was really just flopping.
Hey, more attention to doing it right and proving your football athleticism, I'm all for. In a very real sense, that is what we really want to see out there.
We definitely want to see way fewer penalty flags.
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The photograph is by Sam Lutz at the official Chiefs site. Thank you.
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