Chiefs: Use Tyrann Mathieu to take away Ryan Tannehill’s easy reads
The obvious challenge for the Chiefs in the AFC Championship game is to keep running back Derrick Henry in check. Easier said than done, of course. Henry led the NFL with 1,540 yards and 16 rushing touchdowns on 303 carries in the regular season, and he’s racked up 377 rushing yards in two playoff games. With defensive lineman Chris Jones day-to-day due to a calf injury, the Chiefs could be in real trouble here. Henry gained 188 yards and scored two touchdowns on 23 carries when the Titans and Chiefs matched up in Week 10, and Tennessee’s offense is more defined and explosive than it was then.
If Jones can’t go, that’s also a serious liability for Kansas City’s ability to get pressure on quarterback Ryan Tannehill, especially as it pertains to the structure of the Titans’ offense. Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has worked Tannehill into a big-play passing game that counts play-action as its fundamental staple.
From Week 7, when he replaced Marcus Mariota as the team’s starter, Tannehill has been the league’s most prolific play-action quarterback with 73 completions on 94 attempts for 1,255 yards, 10 touchdowns, and three interceptions. Opposing defenses, locked on Henry as they must be, tend to leave easy reads open for Tannehill, who knows how to take advantage. This 45-yard touchdown pass to receiver Kalif Raymond against the Ravens last week is a perfect example of how the prospect of Henry running the ball leaves open sections of the field for Tannehill to work through.
The answer for the Chiefs may be to use defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, who has been the team’s best and most impactful defender this season, to muddy Tannehill’s reads even after Kansas City has sold out to stop Henry in a play-action look. Letting Mathieu roam to the intermediate and deep areas of the field, as opposed to giving him a defined position, could present Tannehill with things he generally doesn’t see, because so few players can do what Mathieu can do.
Oh, nothing. Just a play where Tyrann Mathieu fakes a blitz, drops to cover Deshaun Watson's first read, then covers his second read, then forces the scramble out of bounds.
Doesn't get credit for any stat here but holy crap. pic.twitter.com/qSeL4FWtfI
— Sam Mellinger (@mellinger) January 15, 2020
As for stopping Henry? Eh, good luck with that. Kansas City’s optimal strategy there would be to score enough points to force Tannehill to throw in response. Which leads us to…