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The Kansas City Chiefs’ defense did not get off to the hot start that they were hoping for this season.
Through two weeks of play, the Chiefs’ defense has been one of the worst units in the league from a statistical standpoint. Stopping the run has specifically been a problem for Kansas City during that span. Heading into Week 3, the Chiefs currently have the most rushing yards allowed (404), most rushing touchdowns allowed (7) and are allowing the most yards per carry in the NFL (6.0).
Hailed by Chiefs GM Brett Veach as one of the best run defenders in his draft class, Jarran Reed has taken that aspect of the team’s struggles to heart. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Reed said the team must go back to the drawing board after failing to slow two of the best running teams in the league.
“Yeah well, our first two games we played two really complex run teams,” Reed explained. “They’re very good at what they do. They did a lot of complicated schemes, but we’ve got to get back to the drawing board, go back to practice, tackle well, tear off blocks, just get back to the drawing board and just get better.”
Reed believes that a lot of that improvement will come with fundamental work done by himself and his teammates during the practice week.
“Yeah, basic fundamentals,” Reed said. “Tearing off blocks like I said before, wrapping up, tearing off blocks, just get going, get back to the basics of football, get better at what we do.”
But the improvement they need to make isn’t just all on the physical side. Andy Reid said on Monday that it also comes down to mindset.
“He looks at us to play great,” Reed said of his head coach. “We’ve got to step up to that challenge. We’ve got to take that upon ourselves each and every day. We’ve got to start out fast. We’ve got to start out physical, we’ve just got to keep going.”
Every week will present a new challenge for this team. After two consecutive Super Bowl appearances, they’ve become the hunted. Reed likened it to playing a Super Bowl every single week because opponents like Cleveland and Baltimore have treated it as such.
“We’ve got to expect that we’re going to get each team’s very best,” Reed said. “Just because of what the Chiefs have done the past few years. So when teams come in here, it’s their Super Bowl to them. We’ve just got to stay grounded and we’ve got to take each game as that — we’re going to get the team’s best and we’ve got to step up to that challenge. We’ve got to play that much better.”
One part of the Chiefs’ struggles so far seems to be the defense gelling and learning to play together. Reed sees improvement in that regard each and every week.
“No, we’re not where we want to be yet, still fairly new all of us playing together. We’ve got a long way to go,” Reed said. “We’ve got 15 more games plus playoffs. I’m pretty sure we’ll be there. We’re going to get better as we go. We’re not going to hold our heads down. We’re going to keep getting better each and every day, keeping working to stop the run, rush the passer and get some sacks.”
The key is to not get down on themselves after a loss in a close game, they’ve got to turn their attention toward the upcoming opponent. At the end of the day, Reed and his teammates aren’t pleased with how the season has started. They know that they’re capable of playing much better and they’re going to continue to work toward that goal ahead of Week 3, their first AFC West game of the season.
“You know, we’re pissed off,” Reed said. “(Our play) was not to our standard and we have very high standards. Trust me, we’re definitely going to get on that, get down and just keep going, man. We’ve got to keep our heads up. We can’t get down on nothing, we know who we are and we’re going to stand on that.”
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