KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Corral him. Close in on him. Above all, contain him.
Naturally, the Chiefs’ defensive linemen have voiced such objectives to one another this week as the group prepares to face speedy and elusive Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray. Accomplishing that in Sunday’s season-opening game will be a true test.
The Chiefs, led by general manager Brett Veach and defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, spent much of this past offseason remaking the defense. The top priority for Veach and Spagnuolo was to strengthen the Chiefs’ pass rush, an area that was a weakness last season. Sunday’s game will feature a pass-rush rotation for Spagnuolo that includes newcomers such as defensive ends Carlos Dunlap and rookie George Karlaftis, and the Chiefs also believe they can generate better pressure on Murray since defensive end Frank Clark is healthier than he was this time last year and star defensive tackle Chris Jones will play most of his snaps at his natural position, the opposite of last year’s opener.
Murray’s impressive skills, as a passer and an improvisational scrambler, present the perfect opposing quarterback for Veach and Spagnuolo to see if the Chiefs’ D-line has been upgraded in the manner they desired.
“It’s not about the explosive hit,” Spagnuolo said of defending Murray before Thursday’s practice. “It’s about keeping him corralled and somehow getting him down. That’s going to take more than one person. He makes any one person in space miss. It’s still going to come back to playing relentless football.”
Spagnuolo’s unit ranked 29th in the league last season in collecting just 31 sacks. A part of the issue was that the Chiefs’ defense struggled with mobile quarterbacks, as it ranked last in total rushing Expected Points Added on quarterback runs, according to TruMedia. The unit also ranked 29th in success rate (just 34.4 percent) on quarterback rushes.
A nightmare scenario for the Chiefs is if Murray has a performance Sunday similar to one that Lamar Jackson, the Baltimore Ravens’ superstar quarterback, produced last September against them. In the Ravens’ 36-35 comeback victory, Jackson recorded three total touchdowns, 239 passing yards and 107 rushing yards.
Murray led the Cardinals to a season-opening victory over the Tennessee Titans a year ago by recording 309 all-purpose yards and five total touchdowns.
“He’s electric like Lamar,” Spagnuolo said of Murray. “This guy gives you the same headaches, not just on designed quarterback runs but when he decides to (run), especially on a pass play. He’s got a unique feel for (when to run), especially if you’re in man (coverage). When he takes off, that could be a problem.”
In previous years, an element in the Chiefs’ preparation this week could’ve included star receiver Tyreek Hill, the league’s fastest player, taking a few quarterback reps with the scout-team offense to help simulate Murray’s speed for the starting defenders. For the first time in his seven-year career, Hill is preparing for his season-opening game, against the New England Patriots, with a new team, as he was traded this offseason to the Miami Dolphins.
“We don’t have anyone as fast as Kyler Murray or as dynamic as him that we can put at the quarterback spot in practice,” Jones said Wednesday. “I hope we can contain him. You just continue to get after it, and I think it’s going to take all four guys on the defensive line, maybe sometimes five.”
The challenge in pursuing Murray, coach Andy Reid and Spagnuolo stressed, is that the Chiefs’ defensive linemen will have to demonstrate the right balance of being disciplined with their fundamentals — such as staying in their pass-rush lanes — while being tenacious when they do get a chance to record a sack or quarterback hit.
One snap from the preseason that best displayed those qualities was from Karlaftis.
Against the Washington Commanders, Karlaftis, who the Chiefs selected in the first round of the NFL Draft, collected a third-down sack of quarterback Carson Wentz. The highlight was excellent from Karlaftis considering the Commanders used two players, a tight end and the right tackle, to block him. But Karlaftis’ second and third efforts to reach Wentz rewarded the execution from the Chiefs’ secondary, as the group effectively covered the Commanders’ receivers.
“I think it will help the defense tremendously,” Jones said of the addition of Karlaftis. “He has a motor like no other.”
Another possible benefit for Spagnuolo, one that he hopes will become a reality Sunday, is that Dunlap’s pass-rush experience allows him to continue his success against the Cardinals. A 13-year veteran, Dunlap, as a member of the Seattle Seahawks, finished last season with 8.5 sacks, 14 quarterback hits, 35 tackles, seven pass breakups and one forced fumble. His final game last season was against the Cardinals, a win for the Seahawks in which he recorded two sacks, three hits and one pass breakup against Murray.
In film sessions and game-planning meetings, Dunlap has offered his evaluation of the Cardinals’ offensive linemen to his new teammates, which has been beneficial for Karlaftis.
“He’s had some great insight in terms of what they do, their personnel,” Karlaftis said Thursday. “He’s just giving us little tips. He’s definitely someone that we look to for keys because he’s seen and done it all.”
A winning performance against Murray, Jones said, should reveal the strong chemistry the Chiefs’ defensive linemen have developed since the start of training camp. From Jones’ perspective, the group’s motivation to chase, contain and sack Murray is simple to understand.
“I’m excited that I get to hit somebody else other than my teammates,” Jones said. “We’re all pumped up. We’ve got a lot of new guys, which forced us to talk more and be more productive in getting to know our teammates better. As a defense, I think we’ll be better overall.”
Special teams update
Dave Toub, the Chiefs’ special teams coordinator, confirmed Thursday that speedy receiver Mecole Hardman will be the primary punt returner and rookie running back Isiah Pacheco will be the primary kickoff returner. As a seventh-round pick, Pacheco’s first touch in his career could be the season-opening kickoff.
“I think Isiah is going to hit it hard, and he’s going to be hard to bring down,” Toub said. “He’s going to fit our style and what we do on kick returns pretty good. He’s fired up about it, too. That’s what’s exciting about it.”
Along with Pacheco, Toub’s unit is expected to rely on rookies such as safety Bryan Cook, linebacker Leo Chenal and cornerbacks Trent McDuffie, Joshua Williams and Jaylen Watson.
“Veach brought in some good players,” Toub said. “I’m excited about what we have and how they handle it. I feel pretty good about them. They’re going to make some mistakes. There’s going to be some things that surprise you, like, ‘Why did you do that?’ But I think, in the long run, after a couple weeks, they’re going to be pretty darn good.”
With the Chiefs opening the season in State Farm Stadium, which features a dome, Toub said kicker Harrison Butker’s range could be as long as 70 yards in end-of-the-first-half and end-of-game situations.
Injury update
Clark (illness) was the lone player on the active roster who didn’t participate in practice Thursday. Receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee), right guard Trey Smith (shoulder), safety Deon Bush (foot), defensive end Malik Herring (abdomen) and rookie right tackle Darian Kinnard (elbow) were all full participants despite being listed on the Chiefs’ injury report.
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09-08-2022, 06:11 PM
Taylor: Chiefs’ remade pass rush gets challenging first test vs. Murray
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