Tag: red zone

Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy talks red zone issues, how to fix them

Bieniemy explained how the Kansas City Chiefs can solve their recent red zone issues.

The Kansas City Chiefs went 0-for-4 in the red zone against the Denver Broncos in Week 13, settling for field goals instead of touchdowns. An offense that is known as an unstoppable powerhouse struggled to score touchdowns in the area where it should be easiest to get points. Prior to this game, the issues weren’t quite as significant, scoring over 60% of the time from within the 20-yard line.

So what’s to blame for the Chiefs’ recent issues in the red zone?

“Coaching and a lack of execution,” Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy told reporters, rather bluntly on Thursday.

Many have accused Andy Reid and Bieniemy of getting “too cute” in the red zone, running trick plays, or taking the ball out of the hands of playmaking quarterback Patrick Mahomes. In Bieniemy’s eyes, both the coaching staff and the players can come together and do a better job.

“As a coaching staff, we always want to make sure that we’re studying and that we’re exhausting every opportunity for our guys to be successful,” Bieniemy continued. “And then when it’s all said and done with, the players’ responsibility is to make sure that they’re executing their jobs with great attention to details. So, somewhere along the line, we have to come together and get that fixed together.”

Reid fell on his sword following the Week 13 game, saying that he could do a better job of putting guys in a position to score. But Mahomes was quick to emphasize that the players have to do a better job with the opportunities they have in the red zone, both passing and running the ball.

“I think first execution, whenever we do have the right play, we’ve got to find the right guy and hit him and get in the end zone,” Mahomes said on Wednesday. “Then when it comes down to it, you got to be tougher and find ways to run the ball in there.”

With missed opportunities and execution, sometimes you just have to get back to the basics in order to correct the issue. For Bieniemy, it all goes back to a core philosophy of this team.

“When it’s all said and done with, every play we feel going into a game plan is designed to score a touchdown,” Bieniemy said. “We’ve got to find a way to make it happen. And I’m going to go back to what I said earlier, it’s about an attitude and a determined mindset. But also too, eliminating the mistakes and eliminating the penalties.”

If the coaches can get the right play calls in and the players are willing to buy-in, magic can happen for this team. It’s just a matter of putting their best foot forward when they get into the red zone against the Dolphins this Sunday.

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Albert Okwuegbunam could become a red zone weapon for Broncos

Broncos rookie tight end Albert Okwuegbunam will be tough to defend in the red zone this season.

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Broncos fourth-round draft pick Albert Okwuegbunam played with quarterback Drew Lock at Missouri from 2017-2018. During their two seasons together, Lock and Okwuegbunam connected 72 times for 881 yards and 17 touchdowns.

Okwuegbunam won’t serve as Denver’s primary receiving tight end — Noah Fant holds that job — but his experience with Lock should help him get on the field and make some plays as a rookie. At 6-5, 258 pounds, “Albert O” could prove to be a valuable red zone target.

“The guy’s a monster,” Lock said on Aug. 29. “He just has a really good feel for the 20-and-in. He just really does. You throw him up a ball he’s going to go get it. He’s sneaky. He’s slippery fast down there. We’ll put it that way. Open field, he’s going to blow by you. In the red zone it’s just kind of a sneaky fast . . . I’ve been really impressed with Albert since he’s been here.”

Okwuegbunam has drawn plenty of praise at training camp (Nick Vannett thinks he could become one of the NFL’s best tight ends) but he’ll need to be more than just a pass catcher to have success in the NFL. Okwuegbunam has already shown improvement as a blocker, which is a great sign.

“He’s improved in that area,” coach Vic Fangio said on Aug. 31. “I think the biggest thing or one of the biggest things with a tight end as it relates to blocking is do they want to do it. Do they have the mentality to block and be prideful in it? He’s shown that he does and he’s willing.

“That’s a big hurdle to get over for a lot of tight ends especially the ones coming out of college these days that don’t do it much. I think he’s making some good progress there.”

Okwuegbunam will likely serve as Denver’s No. 3 tight end behind Fant and Vannett in Week 1. He could win a bigger role as the season progresses.

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Vikings defense was among best in NFL at EPA per play allowed, says PFF

When it came to red zone defense, the Vikings were among the best in the NFL this past season.

Minnesota didn’t make the playoffs last season by passing all that frequently.

Yes, Kirk Cousins was very solid and raised his QBR, but some of that can be contributed to dropping back less.

So what was the key to the Vikings success? You’d have to mention Dalvin Cook’s 2019, but on the other side of the ball, the Vikings were successful at keeping teams out of the end zone.

According to Pro Football Focus, Minnesota was the second-best team in the red zone for expected points allowed (EPA) per play allowed this past season.

So what does that mean?

On a play-by-play basis, when opposing teams got close to scoring, the Vikings were good at making their journey not entirely successful.

Teams with good EPA per play allowed can often stay in games by holding their opponents to field goals or stopping them from scoring entirely. Minnesota’s -0.14 rating in that category is stellar.

The only team ahead of the Vikings was the Denver Broncos, which had an EPA per play allowed of -0.19.

‘NFL RedZone’ will re-air all Sunday games from 2019 season

‘NFL RedZone’ will show each week’s slate of Sunday games for 17 consecutive days, ranging from April 6 until April 22.

Starting on Monday, April 6, NFL RedZone will replay every Sunday from the 2019 regular season for 17 consecutive days, giving fans an opportunity to rewatch games from last year.

Games will air from April 6 until April 22, and games will be aired at 8:00 a.m., 3:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. EST.

Provided below is the complete airing schedule:

  • Monday, April 6 – Week 1
  • Tuesday, April 7 – Week 2
  • Wednesday, April 8 – Week 3
  • Thursday, April 9 – Week 4
  • Friday, April 10 – Week 5
  • Saturday, April 11 – Week 6
  • Sunday, April 12 – Week 7
  • Monday, April 13 – Week 8
  • Tuesday, April 14 – Week 9
  • Wednesday, April 15 – Week 10
  • Thursday, April 16 – Week 11
  • Friday, April 17 – Week 12
  • Saturday, April 18 – Week 13
  • Sunday, April 19 – Week 14
  • Monday, April 20 – Week 15
  • Tuesday, April 21 – Week 16
  • Wednesday, April 22 – Week 17

The coronavirus has made live sports disappear over the last few weeks, and fans are clamoring to be able to watch anything sports-related. The NFL is not only airing last season on repeat, but NFL Game Pass, which includes games from the last 10 years as well as access to programming like Hard Knocks and A Football Life, is free for all fans.

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Has Alvin Kamara regressed? Sean Payton doesn’t think so

New Orleans Saints coach Sean Payton contextualized the struggles running back Alvin Kamara has faced and gave his star a vote of confidence

It’s been a frustrating season for New Orleans Saints running back Alvin Kamara, despite his team’s success. On top of a handful of knee and ankle injuries that sidelined him midway through, he’s struggled to get into the end zone, scoring just two touchdowns all year (both in Week 3’s huge game with the Seattle Seahawks). Considering Kamara scored 14 touchdowns in 2017 and 18 touchdowns in 2018, that’s a huge drop-off.

But it doesn’t tell the whole story. While he hasn’t gotten many opportunities inside the red zone (meaning the opponent’s 20-yard line, which is prime scoring position), logging 29 touches in 11 games this year (2.63 combined runs and targets per game) after getting 110 looks in his previous 31 regular season games (3.55 per game). In addition to that context, Kamara’s efficiency stats are lining up well against what he accomplished just last season. He’s only averaged three rushing yards and five receiving yards less per game:

  • 2018: 58.9 rushing yards per game, 47.3 receiving yards per game
  • 2019: 55.6 rushing yards per game, 42.0 receiving yards per game

However, that’s not going to be very compelling to many fans after Kamara gained a combined 43 yards from scrimmage in the biggest game of the year last week, against the San Francisco 49ers. 17 of those yards came on one carry; without it, Kamara averaged an outlandish 0.61 yards per rushing attempt, including several negative runs.

Maybe Kamara’s lacking his signature lower-body explosive ability due to those injuries, and isn’t breaking tackles as often because of it — after shedding 27 tacklers in the first five weeks, he’s only broken 7 tackles since, per Sports Radar. Something is clearly not right with him. While still a fine asset, he’s not been playing like the cornerstone on offense fans have gotten used to.

However, Saints coach Sean Payton gave Kamara a strong vote of confidence, stressing the need for patience and reminding fans of the adversity Kamara’s dealt with this season in his weekly media availability:

“This is always one of those topics where he will have those games where he jumps out and we’ll call it a breakout game. Part of it is the way the games have unfolded,” Payton said. “There have been good opponents, he was injured for a few weeks there, there was some time when Drew (Brees) missed and Latavius has jumped in. Each week, there’s a different way that it unfolds.”

Still, at the end of the day Payton expects Kamara to reassert himself as a premier talent in the NFL, adding: “He’s too talented a player. I’m seeing everything in practice, the way he prepares. His best football this season’s ahead of him.”

So maybe Kamara is still knocking off some rust from his early-season injuries. Payton isn’t going to stop giving him opportunities to go be great any time soon, even if Kamara turns in a bad performance or two. Fans just has to hope he gets his mojo back before the playoffs start in a few weeks.

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Seahawks receiver DK Metcalf leads the NFL in end zone targets

Seattle Seahawks rookie receiver DK Metcalf leads the NFL with 13 targets in the end zone, a sign of trust between him and Russell Wilson.

When the Seattle Seahawks selected receiver DK Metcalf with the final pick in the second round of the 2019 NFL draft, they hoped he could develop into a multi-faceted weapon on the outside.

At the very least, they knew he’d create matchup issues with his size and speed, and his height would make him a weapon in the red zone.

Metcalf has exceeded expectations in his first season so far, and he has clearly earned the trust of Wilson.

In fact, he remains the league leader in end zone targets this season, tied with Kenny Golladay of the Lions.

Metcalf has been efficient in every area this season, hauling in 35 receptions for 595 yards and five touchdowns through his first 10 NFL games.

The fact that Wilson already trusts him as a red zone threat is a huge boost for this Seattle team – and is certainly nice for the fantasy owners who took a chance on Metcalf as an unproven rookie.

Metcalf and the Seahawks will be back in action on Sunday, Nov. 24 against the Eagles in Philadelphia.

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OC Tim Kelly likes the way the Texans offense has finished drives

Houston Texans offensive coordinator Tim Kelly likes the way his unit has taken advantages of drives to score against the opposition.

The Houston Texans offense is 10th in the league in points for (238) and sixth in the NFL in total yards (3,570), which are part of the club’s 6-3 record and first place in the AFC South.

There is plenty with the unit to be pleased with, but first-year offensive coordinator Tim Kelly really likes the way the offense has concluded their drives with quarterback Deshaun Watson at the helm.

“We’ve shown the ability to sustain and finish drives,” Kelly told reporters Thursday. “Deshaun’s doing a good job of really going out there and getting us into good plays, and our guys are going out there and making the plays that are coming their way and they’re able to do it and, like I said, sustain the drives.”

The Texans are averaging 2:59 time of possession per drive, fifth-best in the NFL, and 2.47 points per drive, the fourth-best in the league. The biggest stat that shows the offense is finishing drives is their 65.7% red zone conversion rate, tied with the Baltimore Ravens, Sunday’s opponent, for the fifth-best in the NFL.

Not bad for a unit that last season finished in the bottom-10 in red zone conversion at 50%, the only other playoff team other than the Dallas Cowboys to finish that low in red zone conversions.

“It doesn’t necessarily have to be a chunk play in order for us to score,” Kelly said. “So, that’s something that we’re continuing to try and get better at, but have shown improvement at.”

The Texans will need to sustain long drives, and finish them off, when they take on the Ravens Sunday at 12:00 p.m. CT at M&T Bank Stadium. Baltimore is the highest-scoring offense in the NFL with 300 points tallied thus far. In order for the Texans to keep the Ravens at bay, Houston will need to out-play them on the scoreboard both proactively and in an indirect manner via time of possession.