Chiefs show they're for real.

[Halfcan]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Watching the alignments/reads this week was pretty eye opening.

I wonder if the reason the Falcons do such a poor job against the pass is that they do a really poor job of disguising coverages. I'd say about 2/3 of the plays I could look at the alignment pre-snap and know where the ball was going. The Falcons did a really bad job of making it look like they had coverage where they didn't.

I think it was a 3rd down play where Hill lined in the slot and you could see that he had 1 on 1 vs. a LB - so of course Smith hit him quick, he made a single move and went for 20ish. A play or two later was the same story with Kelce.

You could just look at the formation, find the 1 on 1 matchup vs. a linebacker or safety and know that either Hill, Kelce or Ware was going to have room to work. The Falcons DC was playing checkers all day and Reid/Smith were making him pay for it.

This is sn excellent point. Chiefs are doing a much better job of playcalling and creating great matchups. When Maclin is healthy we will have another play maker that demands attention.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Halfcan

This is sn excellent point. Chiefs are doing a much better job of playcalling and creating great matchups. When Maclin is healthy we will have another play maker that demands attention.

The power at the bar was out so I missed that throw to Kelce in real time but it was the same thing - they just walked Neal up there and Smith knew at the snap that he got the matchup he wanted.

The article says that's a 'fake screen' but if Kelce didn't get the 1v1 on Neal, I bet that turns into a real screen. The Falcons just didn't make anything difficult for the Chiefs pre-snap at all. Maybe it was a product of play design and the Falcons simply didn't have a choice (hard to say; I know some stuff but I don't know all the stuffs). But in either event, Reid was dictating the engagement from start to finish.

This was a Reid W. Smith played well and Berry made the big plays, but Andy Reid won this game by simply being better at his job than the Atlanta DC is at his.

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Originally Posted by Halfcan

This is sn excellent point. Chiefs are doing a much better job of playcalling and creating great matchups. When Maclin is healthy we will have another play maker that demands attention.

It really will. Biggest plays yesterday were throwing towards the sidelines. With Maclin you get a confident receiver who can go middle on moderate to deep routes

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

It really will. Biggest plays yesterday were throwing towards the sidelines. With Maclin you get a confident receiver who can go middle on moderate to deep routes

Depends on if his head's right.

He wasn't in the game for the weeks leading up to his injury. Something has been off with him all year.

Let's not act like Maclin was hauling in 7 balls for 75 yards every game leading up to the injury. He was hauling in barely half his targets and making a fairly minimal impact. He hasn't been a difference maker since week 1.

Now that's not to say he won't be when he returns, but it's folly to just expect it.

[threebag]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Depends on if his head's right.

He wasn't in the game for the weeks leading up to his injury. Something has been off with him all year.

Let's not act like Maclin was hauling in 7 balls for 75 yards every game leading up to the injury. He was hauling in barely half his targets and making a fairly minimal impact. He hasn't been a difference maker since week 1.

Now that's not to say he won't be when he returns, but it's folly to just expect it.

Hopefully after everything he has found his hunger again. He can be awesome.

[TigeRRUppeRRcut]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Depends on if his head's right.

He wasn't in the game for the weeks leading up to his injury. Something has been off with him all year.

Let's not act like Maclin was hauling in 7 balls for 75 yards every game leading up to the injury. He was hauling in barely half his targets and making a fairly minimal impact. He hasn't been a difference maker since week 1.

Now that's not to say he won't be when he returns, but it's folly to just expect it.

He was clutch in SD but yes the death of his friend affected him mentally for several weeks and then of course this month long injury. A lot of uncharacteristic drops this season from him too. Hopefully the law of averages comes into play

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by TigerUppercut

He was clutch in SD but yes the death of his friend affected him mentally for several weeks and then of course this month long injury. A lot of uncharacteristic drops this season from him too. Hopefully the law of averages comes into play

He appeared overweight and slow before his groin injury, so I'm unsure what to expect of him after returning from a 5+ week groin injury.

Even if he's completely healed, I wouldn't expect much from him immediately and it might be January before he's in game shape, if then.

Personally, I'm writing him off this year. If he returns to form, it's a bonus but at this point, I'm not expecting it.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

He appeared overweight and slow before his groin injury, so I'm unsure what to expect of him after returning from a 5+ week groin injury.

Even if he's completely healed, I wouldn't expect much from him immediately and it might be January before he's in game shape, if then.

Personally, I'm writing him off this year. If he returns to form, it's a bonus but at this point, I'm not expecting it.

Likewise.

I'm treating him like I was treating Charles - if he came back and contributed, that's gravy. But I didn't expect Charles to make a difference this year even before his setback.

Same thing with Maclin. You just can't operate under the assumption that he'll be back strong. In a long enough career, just about every player will have a 'lost' season in there somewhere and they happen for a variety of reasons. For a truly great player, it usually takes a few reasons.

Welp, the injury kinda felt like a kill-shot. I just don't see him getting back to his 2015 form. The only shot, IMO, is the playoffs. Perhaps the next 4 weeks will get him back into playing shape and the emotion of the playoffs will snap him out of his funk. But I'd say that's still a bit of a longshot.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

Likewise.

I'm treating him like I was treating Charles - if he came back and contributed, that's gravy. But I didn't expect Charles to make a difference this year even before his setback.

Same thing with Maclin. You just can't operate under the assumption that he'll be back strong. In a long enough career, just about every player will have a 'lost' season in there somewhere and they happen for a variety of reasons. For a truly great player, it usually takes a few reasons.

Welp, the injury kinda felt like a kill-shot. I just don't see him getting back to his 2015 form. The only shot, IMO, is the playoffs. Perhaps the next 4 weeks will get him back into playing shape and the emotion of the playoffs will snap him out of his funk. But I'd say that's still a bit of a longshot.

The good news is we don't NEED them.

We NEED Ford and Houston healthy. We NEED Peters. We NEED Poe.

[DaFace]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

He appeared overweight and slow before his groin injury, so I'm unsure what to expect of him after returning from a 5+ week groin injury.

Even if he's completely healed, I wouldn't expect much from him immediately and it might be January before he's in game shape, if then.

Personally, I'm writing him off this year. If he returns to form, it's a bonus but at this point, I'm not expecting it.

I don't expect him to come back and dominate, but I certainly hope that he can come back and at least draw some attention (or at least more than Conley/Wilson currently are doing). If we can just get Hill and Kelce into one-on-ones a little more, it'll make a huge difference.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by DaFace

I don't expect him to come back and dominate, but I certainly hope that he can come back and at least draw some attention (or at least more than Conley/Wilson currently are doing). If we can just get Hill and Kelce into one-on-ones a little more, it'll make a huge difference.

In his absence we've been doing what we should have been doing the whole time.

Targeting Kelcee, running the ball, and creating mismatches at the WR position.