Well for the second week in a row the Chiefs were business like in their victory. They came out early, established the run, played stout defense and jumped out to an early lead. The Seahawks were never really in the game jumping out to a 21-7 lead. The Seahawks pulled it close making it 21-17, but then the Chiefs supplied away scoring 3 unanswered touchdowns making it 35-17. The Chiefs were on cruise control after that and ran away with the victory and sole possession of first place in the AFC west at 7-4.
As always here is the good and bad from the game:
Good:
Dwayne Bowe - Is there a more unstoppable force in the league right now than Dwayne Bowe? I don't know that there is. I think after the Indianapolis Colts game he really woke up. The fan base, for the first time since he's been here, truly turned on him and he realized his future as the player he wants to be was in jeopardy. He has started to increase his better practice habits and it has showed on the field. Bowe is using his hands to catch the ball, he is not lacking concentration, running better routes, and he is on the same page with Matt Cassel for a connection like we have never seen in KC. It remains to be seen if Bowe can come up with the clutch play in a close game like we will need, but that is the last remaining part of his game to make him an all-pro type player this year.
Matt Cassel - As good as Bowe's been, Cassel has been just as good. I wrote earlier about whether Matt Cassel deserves a reevaluation and I am starting to believe myself more and more each week. It is not just about the stats, which are considerable, it is about the things I am seeing from Cassel that I have not seen before. He is more comfortable in the pocket, his footwork is better, his accuracy has improved and most importantly, his decision making has improved. He no longer locks on to one receiver, he takes what the D gives him, goes through his reads, and finds the open receiver. It looks as though in his 3rd year as a starter he has shaken off 8 years of rust and is looking comfortable. And is it a stretch to believe that he would be mediocre leading up to this and then finally "click" and take off? No, it took Drew Brees 4 years before feeling entirely comfortable, Tom Brady's stats were underwhelming until about 4-5 years in the system when they really started to open up. Ultimately, this shows that the path Cassel has taken is not unheard of and he might develop into the QB we want him to be in KC. Not necessarily a franchise QB in the mold of Manning/Brady, but definitely a QB you can win with the mold of Flacco or Ryan.
Offensive Live - Despite spotty play of Barry Richardson at LT, the line played very well and let Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles run all over the suspect Seahawks D. They also provided plenty of time against the blitz to allow Cassel to make the throws he needed to make. This unit might not be full of stars, but they compliment each other well and have gelled.
Front Seven on D - The run defense was formidable. They held the Seahawks to 20 yards rushing total on the day, only 9 yards in the first half and 11 in the second. This is not as if the Seahawks got behind early and completely had to abandon their game plan. In the 3rd quarter, the score was 21-17, so they still tried to establish the run and they just couldn't. It cannot be understated how much of a difference Romeo Crennel has made.
Ricky Price - Not a spectacular game, but played admirably in backing up the injured Brandon Flowers. Hopefully, Flowers will be back for the Denver game but it's good to know we have a capable backup for spot duty if necessary.
Bad:
Defensive Secondary - It was no doubt due to the wide score margin, but the secondary had some big lapses and allowed some big plays. It's lucky it didn't have a more adverse affect on the game, but those types of plays cannot continue.
Tamba Hali - Where has he been? For having a huge first half of the season, Tamba has been slow to production the last few weeks. It seems teams are keying in on him and doubling him at the line. Since the Chiefs don't have another pass rusher teams can do this and not worry about the other side. The Chiefs need to find a way to increase Tamba's effectiveness because otherwise there is no other pass rush the Chiefs can muster.
Final Thoughts: This was another fun game for the Chiefs. They came out and did exactly what they wanted to do, established the run, played bend but don't break D and got to an early lead. They took that and cruised to a solid victory to maintain their 1 game lead in the AFC West. A big matchup is ahead against the Broncos and if the Chiefs want to win the division they MUST win this game. Plus it would be some sweet revenge at Arrowhead format he drubbing they took a few weeks ago. I am looking forward to this matchup.
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