The defense of the Kansas City Chiefs has received well-deserved attention over the first three weeks of the season, stifling their opponents. A significant part of the success has been the growth of the young players in the unit that shined in crucial spots during last year’s postseason.
Chiefs defensive line coach Joe Cullen has worked tirelessly with his young players and singled out second-year player Leo Chenal. The former Wisconsin standout has played more formation this season and earned a good work ethic reputation and nickname, according to Cullen during his Thursday press conference.
“We call him ‘the beast’ for a reason,” Cullen explained. “No, coach Spags (Steve Spagnuolo) has done a tremendous job, getting opportunities for guys and certain packages when they show that, hey, they love football, and B, they’re going to do it as opposed to doing and Leo is doing a great job.
“He’s playing in the middle. It’s in the Buffalo package, playing the edge and our base package. And he’s playing a little end in certain situations. He’s doing a great job, doing a great job in the run game. He studies the game. And he’s powerful and doing a great job in terms of getting after the quarterback as well.”
Chenal has contributed well this season, with 14 tackles through three weeks and plenty of much-needed pursuit plays to assist teammates in coverage.