[BigRedChief]

Chiefs' defense stands out.
By Eric Allen.
ESPN Insider.

The Kansas City Chiefs made some major moves in this offseason and if Week 1 was any indication, those moves paid off. The Chiefs and the Minnesota Vikings were the two teams that made major moves to balance out the difference between their explosive offenses and wayward defenses. The Chiefs have assimilated their new players seamlessly whereas the Vikings seem to have had more trouble.

Entering this week all eyes were on the Chiefs. For the past few seasons they've tinkered endlessly with the defense in terms of adding players, changing schemes, changing coordinators and drafting defensive players. This is supposed to be the season where it all comes together and results in a Super Bowl run or popular opinion states that the team should be blown up. After watching their Week 1 performance I think it's safe to say this team won't need any dynamite at the end of the season. The three biggest free-agent additions this past offseason were CB Patrick Surtain, S Sammy Knight and LB Kendrell Bell.

Surtain is in the prime of his career and because he is so good in man coverage he allows Chiefs defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham to be aggressive in his coverage schemes. He's one of the best cover corners in the league and he still has the ability to shut down one side of the field against some of the best receivers in the game. I played with Knight with the New Orleans Saints and came away from the experience impressed with his intelligence and ability to make big plays. Knight is always around the ball and forcing turnovers because he's smart and knows the tendencies of opposing teams through his film work. He's an excellent addition because he's able to quarterback the defensive backfield and will make plays. Finally the signing of Bell brings nastiness to the Chiefs and that's been sorely lacking over the past few seasons. A defense should send the message that they will knock opposing teams around and Bell embodies that message.

I had the pleasure of playing with a defense that intimidated opposing teams when I played for the Philadelphia Eagles. Opposing offenses knew we were going to knock the stuffing out of them. We weren't afraid to put our foot on an opposing team's neck. An offense is more likely to make mistakes when they know an opposing team will knock 'em out. The Chiefs didn't have that before because they didn't have a player who wasn't afraid to just let loose.

Now they have a guy like that and that makes a world of difference. The final piece of this puzzle was the fact that the Chiefs kept Cunningham after last season. That meant that the team was able to sign these three guys knowing where Cunningham wanted to play them and how he wanted to use them. It also helps in the game planning.

For instance, if a coordinator knows that in the third and fourth quarter of games that his team struggles with it's two-gap and doesn't get the push it needs, then he knows to call more blitzes. The combination of free agent signings and consistency in the staff could result in a Super Bowl run or at the very least a strong run at the AFC West title. Either way, we could see Chiefs' coach Dik Vermeil crying tears of joy at the end of the season because of his defense. Eric Allen played cornerback for 14 NFL seasons with the Eagles, Saints and Raiders. He's a regular contributor to Insider.