The Kansas City Chiefs have struggled to cover tight ends in two games. The Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals put up big numbers that matched the Chief’s linebackers and safety. However, help might be on the way.
When the NFL Draft reached Friday night, the Kansas City Chiefs were giddy in round four when Washington State Safety Jaden Hicks was still on the board. Not only was he the Chief’s highest-rated player when he was selected in the fourth round, but many NFL draft experts rated him as one of the top four safeties.
Thankfully, he fell to the Chiefs. In preseason games, he was a star, and his skillful approach in training camp made the eyes of the coaching staff right up with anticipation to what he could add to the back of the Chief’s defense.
In fact, before the start of the season, Kansas City Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach was asked about his fourth-round pick, and you could see the pride in his eyes as the words he spoke gave his young draft pick a glowing review.
The Chiefs face the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night. They don’t have the passing prowess of Lamar Jackson or Joe Burrow, but they never count out Kirk Cousins in a regular-season NFL game.
His fourth-quarter two-minute drive in Philadelphia Monday Night was perfect and decisive. He cut up the Eagles secondary, leaving the city of brotherly love victorious.
Offensively, the Falcons again can’t match the prowess of the Ravens or Bengals, but they have some playmakers. Tight End Kyle Pitts has yet to make an impact this season. He’s in the same boat as Chiefs Tight End Travis Kelce.
The issue for Pitts has been that Cousins needs to be in sync outside of that final drive Monday Night. That could change Sunday with renewed confidence and the chance to beat both Super Bowl LVII combatants back-to-back.
Outside of Pitts, the Falcons don’t have NFL-caliber tight ends in Charlie Woerner and Ross Dwelley. Still, they can catch the ball if it is thrown their way.
Granted, Pitts is more of a Wide Receiver than a Tight End, so it might be a good game for the Chiefs to give their young defender a chance to showcase his skills.
Safety Justin Reid was banged up a bit in the Bengals win, and Hicks did get some playing time. Today, Defensive Backs Coach Dave Merritt indicated that the plan is for Hicks to get more reps in Sunday’s game.
Ultimately, that’s the call of Steve Spagnuolo, but they could use some fresh legs in the deep secondary. Further, Hicks can play at the line of scrimmage as well, so he could be an excellent option to cover Hicks or Bijon Robinson out of the backfield.
Either way, the Chiefs need Hicks and his talents on defense. The linebackers continue to struggle to cover tight ends, and the new breed is more receiver-like; the Ravens and Bengals have exploited the Chief’s primary weakness on defense.
Some blame goes to the pass rush, who can’t let quarterbacks escape the pocket in critical situations. Jackson and Burrow got a second life because KC’s push rush couldn’t get them on the ground. Cousins is mobile enough, and his ability to shift his feet to avoid pressure is the best in the NFL.
In the long term, Hicks will be a starter for the Chiefs. In the short term, he needs to get some playing time. Sunday against the Falcons would be a great learning experience for him – especially considering the magnitude of their AFC West showdown a week from Sunday in Los Angeles against the Chargers.
Either way, Kansas City is 2-0 on the season, and they won’t face quarterbacks like Jackson and Burrow again this season. In fact, outside of Josh Allen, who the Chiefs will play in Buffalo later this season, they deserve a pat on the back for making key plays to narrowly win both games.
Hicks can help the defense, and Sunday would be the perfect game to see what he can do under fire.
