The Kansas City finally beat the Giants in New York. In their long history, they’ve never beaten an NFC team in the Big Apple. However, the Chiefs made a significant impact on the Giants’ offense, and in turn, are discovering who they are as a team.
Forget the final score, how it happened, or some glaring mistakes; the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the New York Giants on Sunday night to reset their course for another playoff run. Facing tough odds, heavy pressure, and doubt that had reached the players and the Kingdom, the Chiefs handled their business to secure their first win.
As I watched the Chiefs’ 22-9 win over the Giants, it became clear how much heart this team has. Sometimes it wasn’t pretty, especially on offense, but they fought hard and secured the victory without letting a bad team take them down.
Heading into the game, many NFL analysts believed Russell Wilson was on par with Patrick Mahomes. After Sunday’s game, I doubt anyone will say that again. Though Mahomes faced some struggles, he found his rhythm in the second half with the gunslinger mentality that will benefit this offense.
Though it wasn’t easy, his savior has been New England Patriots cast-off Tyquan Thornton, who has nearly surpassed his career statistics in receiving yards and touchdowns in just three games.
Mahomes’ reliance on Thornton was crucial due to Xavier Worthy’s injury and Rashee Rice’s suspension. Looking ahead, I believe that one team has a more potent trio of young receivers in the NFL whenever they are on the field this season.
The offense wasn’t perfect in the first half, and this team has a big hole at running back, as shown by Isiah Pacheco’s performance in the passing game. If Andy Reid wants to expand his offense, the running backs need to make more plays.
Kareem Hunt is the team’s top running back, but rookie Brashard Smith made some positive plays Sunday night. Elijah Mitchell has not yet been active, but Reid can’t wait any longer with Pacheco.
Despite everything, the Giants possess the best defensive front seven that the Chiefs will face this season. They are quick, skilled, and disciplined, and it took Kansas City a half to find a few gaps they could take advantage of in the second half.
Sometimes, the offensive line looked strong. Yes, Jawaan Taylor was penalized multiple times. His days as a starter are coming to an end. Josh Simmons learned a lot about leverage, and although Giants pass rusher Brian Burns was tough, he did a decent job against the best pass rusher he’s faced this year. Even Kingsley Suamataia had a solid effort.
So, we can take away a few lessons from the offense as they move forward. Xavier Worthy might return Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens. That provides the offense with another option, even if he’s not fully healthy.
On defense, how about we give a lot of credit to Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo? After some significant mistakes in the opener against the Chargers, he’s crafted two brilliant game plans against the Eagles and Giants.
He’s somehow built a solid defense that has produced results from some young players, like cornerback Noel Williams and defensive tackle Omar Norman-Lott. I could include Ashton Gillette, but he struggled Sunday night.
Spags can make quick adjustments, and with an increased pass rush Sunday night and the best secondary he’s had since joining the Chiefs in 2019, he can afford to let his linebackers roam the field.
Nick Bolton led the team in tackles, and even though this defense still struggles to cover running backs and tight ends in the passing game, they are at least hustling to the football. Hopefully, rookie Jeffrey Bassa can add his speed to the defense.
Overall, the Chiefs should take pride in their win, as they learned a lot about themselves in the process. They faced tremendous pressure but managed to overcome it and beat a hot team, especially offensively, heading into the game.
However, the best news about the win is that I can’t see how, if they keep winning, the Los Angeles Chargers—despite their 3-0 record—are better than the Chiefs. They have a great head coach who does more to position his team to win, just as Mahomes does for the Chiefs.
The good news is that it’s still early, and the AFC West will be up for grabs through December.
