The KC Chiefs defense is even more dominant than you think.

The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the toughest, most physical defenses in the entire NFL. Given how things went for the team last year, most of those elements continued through much of the 2023 campaign. However, there is one thing the Chiefs defense does consistently well that stands out every week. That would be an incredible performance by the Kansas City defense.

In Andy Reid’s early years, the Chiefs defense was a unit in which teams feasted if they were on the ground. This was still true in the early parts of Patrick Mahomes. And now, under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, KC is finally as complete as ever as a run defense. The depth under Spagnuolo usually shows up most in the back half of the season and the playoffs. But it looks like the Chiefs will be holding off opposing rushing attacks throughout 2024. And their run defense stands out more than you might imagine.

Slowing down the league’s best running backs

If you’re a fantasy football fan and own running backs preparing to take on the Chiefs, you might want to keep them on your bench. Not many running backs even posted impressive yards per carry against Kansas City. But in terms of just yards, the most the Chiefs defense has allowed to a running back in a single game is 58 (Jordan Mason in Week 7). In that game against San Francisco, not a single running back with at least 11 carries in the game against Kansas City even reached 50 yards. This includes a list of outstanding talents such as Derrick Henry, Bijan Robinson, JK Dobbins and Alvin Kamara.

To further put an exclamation point on opposing running backs, all four of these names currently rank in the top 12 in rushing yards. Three of these four are in the top ten. In fact, Henry currently leads the league in rushing yards with 946 total yards. Henry and Dobbins had the lowest scoring numbers against Kansas City. Both Robinson and Kamara posted their second-highest totals of the season against the Chiefs.

And just last week, the Chiefs defense allowed the Las Vegas Raiders just 33 yards rushing on 21 carries. That’s good for a whopping 1.6 yards per carry. Alexander Mattison somehow only gained 15 yards on 14 carries. The five other Raiders with at least one carry combined for just 18 yards rushing on seven carries. Honestly, it’s hard to know which of these two points is more impressive.

The Chiefs’ defense was exactly what Spagnuolo had hoped for. They can meet runners at or behind the line of scrimmage to slow down the run. Kansas City can confuse offensive players with their varied coverage and defensive outlook. The pass rush is absolutely versatile, a point that can be further emphasized with the trade acquisition of Josh Uche. Best of all, their stellar defense forced teams to become one-dimensional. Overall, this allows the Chiefs defense to instill fear into opponents.

Not only do they all come together with their game and statistics. Simply put, this unit is built exactly as Spagnuolo envisioned when the team overhauled its defense a few years ago. All Chiefs defenders are instinctive. They will not be subject to physical suppression often. Overall, when Spagnuolo first arrived in Kansas City, there weren’t as many of these pieces on defense. To achieve this from a defense that is still largely young is an added bonus.

All of these aspects show up in the run defense’s amazing start. The instincts kick in when players like Drew Tranquill, Leo Chenal and Nick Bolton seemingly beat the running back to the point of attack before he’s fully open. You also have a physical edge across the entire front seven that is contagious throughout the depth chart among the first two tiers of defense. When given the chance to make a run, this front seven causes a lot of collateral damage by doing the dirty work.

NFL trends go through a cycle over time and generations. It looks like we are seeing a change in offensive attacks this 2024. For the first time in a long time, teams became more comfortable maintaining balance and leaning on the ground. For several years, this was a hallmark of teams like the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles. They have made it clear that they are going to deliver it to you over and over again on the ground. But others believe the good running game is viewed more positively this year.

A lot of that has to do with the way the defense is playing right now. The double-height nature of the projectiles eliminates the possibility of explosive passes across the field. Many defensive units also strive to have more speed than size on the field, which leads to lighter boxes in certain situations. Additionally, many NFL defensive backs are simply seeing more runs on first or second down as offenses look to get ahead of the sticks and stay on schedule.

A strong defense usually matters more during the colder months of the regular season and playoffs. But in this particular campaign, the use of running backs and the ground game is seeing a bit of a resurgence. Being able to lean on a defense that can slow down that area of ​​the opponent’s offense is vital to winning games at this stage of the season. This is especially true when most NFL games are decided by one score. When it comes to the Kansas City Chiefs, add their ability to run the ball to the list of things that make them stand out from the crowd.