PFF Grades the Chiefs, Week 13

[Hammock Parties]

1. Jared Gaither graded out with a 1.1 overall, 1.8 in pass blocking, 0 sacks, pressures or hits. He got docked for a penalty or he would have had a 1.7 overall.

How does that compare to the Chiefs OTs?

Branden Albert has only had two games better than a 1.8 all year in pass blocking. Barry Richardson's best overall game all year is a 0.7.

FAIL.

2. Speaking of Albert, he had a nice game against the Bears with a 2.4 and only 1 pressure allowed. Very impressive going against Peppers. As everyone knows, Richardson sucks and he had another shit game. If he is starting next year, put Pioli in a catapult and launch him out of Arrowhead Stadium. Richardson spends another week at the bottom of the PFF OT rankings. His pass blocking is bad, but no one's run blocking is even close to his -17.5 for the year.

3. I dunno WTF is going on with Ryan Lilja and Rodney Hudson. They split 76 snaps down the middle. Hudson didn't have a very good game (-1.7) but, shit, when he's being yanked in and out that's not surprising.

4. The Chiefs linebackers raped Chicago's offense. All of them. I'm going to post a bunch of gifs later this week but here are the grades: 3.7, 3.5, 4.5, 3.2. Houston, Belcher, DJ, Hali. Justin Houston and DJ had 6 and 5 stops, respectively, which is beastly. Hali had 5 QB pressures.

5. Glenn Dorsey had a really good game with a 1.8 and 4 stops. He's still doing his job, as he's third ranked against the run at his position.

6. Jon McGraw missed two more tackles. Shocker.

7. Derrick Johnson is now the top-rated inside linebacker against the run, and no one has more stops.

OFFICAL RECAP:

http://www.profootballfocus.com/blog...bears-week-13/

Kansas City – Three Performances of Note

Linebackers Steal the Show

On a day where malaise and mediocrity was in vogue, the one unit that really upped their game was the Chiefs’ linebackers. All four of their starters contributed in extremely positive ways and fueled the Chiefs’ stifling defensive display. The play of Derrick Johnson (+4.5) has been well documented in our game reviews here at PFF this season, but he once again put a dominant display. His work in run defense was as strong as ever – his tackle that dealt Matt Forte his injury was a particularly impressive defensive play; going under the block of Matt Spaeth to get to the Bears’ runner at the line. Johnson was not alone this week as Tamba Hali (+3.2) was his usual explosive self and rookie Justin Houston (+3.7) recorded his strongest showing as a pass rusher with three sacks, a pressure and a batted pass.



No More Backup Plan

After the Chiefs cut their ties with Jared Gaither this week they were left with no backup plan to the persistently disappointing Barry Richardson (-6.1) at right tackle. He didn’t exactly vindicate his coaches and front office with his display and was the lowest-graded player for the entire Chiefs’ offense this week. Whether Gaither was made a scapegoat for his false start in last week’s game or there were off-the-field issues that hastened his departure, there is little doubt that the Chiefs will need to act fast to get another contingency in for Richardson in the offseason. Once again, Richardson was beaten badly in both run and pass games, yielding two hits and a sack in pass protection along with a tackle for loss in the running game. Richardson was completely undone by Israel Idonije on that run play (Q2 2:20) and with Richardson now protecting the blindside of the Chiefs’ incumbent quarterback the rest of 2011, his poor play will come into sharper focus.



Fragile – Handle with Care

So Kyle Orton did take the field at Soldier Field this year … for one play, and for the Chiefs. After a predictably mediocre opening stanza from Tyler Palko (-2.8) the Chiefs opened up the second quarter with Orton under center and went deep into the bag of tricks with a flea flicker. The pass fell incomplete and Orton was knocked out for the rest of the game with an injury to the index finger on his throwing hand – a rather ignominious debut. The task fell to Palko to lead the Chiefs to victory, which he accomplished by not leading them to defeat. Palko made very few positive contributions, grading positively for only two throws and his radar was way off for most of the game. However, in a game as tight and as poorly played as this, he adhered to the old moniker, which tends to hang around bad offensive football teams, that a punt is a good series. His worst throw all game was an overthrow to Steve Breaston which was so overthrown that the pass sailed over Bears’ safety Major Wright as well. There was little positive for the Chiefs to take from Palko moving forward but his first career win was a testament to merely not losing the game.



Chicago – Three Performances of Note

Fine Margins

Two bounces of a football turned this game on a 14-point swing in favor of the Kansas City Chiefs. Neither team did enough to win and arguably both teams deserved to walk out of Soldier Field with a loss to their name. However, on a bounce of a Hail Mary at the end of the second quarter and the bobble of a drop by Roy Williams (-1.6) the Chiefs scored seven points and took seven away from the Bears. On such fine margins not only are games won and lost but seemingly also are careers defined. If the combination of Brian Urlacher and Chris Conte knock down that Hail Mary and Williams plays like a pro wide receiver for a split second holding on to that pass at the Chiefs’ 3, are the Bears looking at replacements for Caleb Hanie (+1.6) today? Possibly. As aside from that game-turning play Hanie’s performance still wasn’t good enough and one play isn’t enough to look past the glaring lack of composure and accuracy he displayed all game. His interception to Brandon Carr at 6:16 in the third quarter was a stark reminder of the naivety that Hanie still possesses as an NFL QB. However, at this stage of his career is Donovan McNabb a much better option? Did the Chiefs doom the Bears’ season by claiming Orton?



Plumbing New Depths

The Bears offensive line and right tackle Lance Louis (-7.9) showed relative signs of life earlier this season as the Bears adjusted the offense to protect Jay Cutler better. For Louis in particular, that resurgence has come crashing back to earth in the last month and reached a new low this week with the worst showing of his pro career. Louis was responsible for five sacks charged to four different defenders and Caleb Hanie will not be thanking him for the rate at which those plays came in the second half. Up until the 1:31 mark in the third quarter Louis was having a solid day, yielding a solitary pressure to Derrick Johnson until that point. However, in the Bears final 18 pass plays, Louis surrendered five sacks and one pressure . Three of those sacks came on third downs to halt Chicago drives and two came on back-to-back plays. The Bears’ offensive line has long been a thorn in their side and with an inexperienced quarterback it proved a major handicap as Hanie couldn’t set and throw in the pocket, just when he needed to the most.



Defensive Line Holds Up Their End of the Bargain

While the Chiefs’ linebackers led the Kansas City charge on defense, it was the Bears’ defensive line that did the same for Chicago. Even with their talisman Julius Peppers (+5.8) having to leave the field through injury the Bears’ defensive front was stifling up front against the run all day limiting Thomas Jones to 2.3 yards per carry and Jackie Battle to 1.4 yards per carry. It was only the speed of Dexter McCluster on draw plays that had any success on the ground and most of that came on the longest rush of McCluster’s career. The Bears didn’t have much joy rushing the passer though here. Against Tyler Palko that wasn’t crucial as his accuracy is poor enough without pressure (44%). Plays such as Peppers’ pursuit to break up a screen on Palko’s first play back in at 14:53 in the second and Stephen Paea’s (+3.0) tackle deep in the backfield at 12:49 in the first showed that the Bears defensive front came ready to play this week.



Game Notes

- Kyle Orton wasn’t the only Chief to play a solitary snap in this game. Cory Greenwood, Andy Studebaker and Jeremy Horne all saw action on only one snap as well.

- The loss of Matt Forte meant the Bears had no backs to use in the passing game. Consequently, Caleb Hanie didn’t aim a single pass behind the line of scrimmage, a large and key chunk of the Bears’ offense lost early in the game.

- Kansas City’s 21 total QB pressures (combining sacks, hits and pressures) were their most since their playoff defeat to Baltimore in January when they recorded 22.



PFF Game Ball

The lack of press that Derrick Johnson still receives is utterly baffling. Yet another fine performance for the Chiefs’ defensive star this week as he continues to state his case as the best inside linebacker in the AFC.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by Tribal Warfare

From what I heard at least Gaither and Oher were going to lock down the Ravens bookends, and when Gaither played RT he didn't look bad at all. IMO, he came over because of his best friend(s) Albert and McClain. It seems Gaither didn't take to this staff's coaching style thus the term "the right 53" is used.

Originally Posted by aturnis

The problem is not that he CAN'T play RT, but rather that he won't. It's pretty well documented that he has no desire to play on the right side...

I heard Matt Williamson or whatever his name is say that Baltimore was "unimpressed" with Gaither's play on the right side. A day or so later, I heard Michael Lombardi on WHB and he said the Ravens flat out said Gaither wasn't a RT.

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by Omega

That's only because he sucked as a WR. Come on.

What's your point? Brian Waters sucked at TE.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by aturnis

What's your point? Brian Waters sucked at TE.

Brian Waters was a key cog in the #1 offense by his 2nd year starting.

I think it's safe to say McBuster is not following that career arc at this point.

[BossChief]

Originally Posted by Omega

That's only because he sucked as a WR. Come on.

You are lacking any objectivity in your views of this player, for whatever reason.

In his second year and with 4 games to go, DMC has 628 yards from scrimmage.

Third highest on the team behind Bowe and Breaston (only 13 yards behind Breaston, too)

That's not garbage, dude.

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

I heard Matt Williamson or whatever his name is say that Baltimore was "unimpressed" with Gaither's play on the right side. A day or so later, I heard Michael Lombardi on WHB and he said the Ravens flat out said Gaither wasn't a RT.

It's documented that he wouldn't play RT, and that he's known for being lazy, faking injuries and taking plays off. You don't think he might have been sandbagging in order to get cut so he could play LT somewhere else.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by BossChief

You are lacking any objectivity in your views of this player, for whatever reason.

In his second year and with 4 games to go, DMC has 628 yards from scrimmage.

Third highest on the team behind Bowe and Breaston (only 13 yards behind Breaston, too)

That's not garbage, dude.

I don't care about stats.

Watch him play. What does he do that is special?

Does he make guys miss? Once a month, maybe.

Does he have elite speed? Hell no.

Does he have good vision? Again, no. If it's not a draw play with a giant hole, he gains nothing.

He has some yards this year because Charles got hurt and we have no capable backup, and he's the king of garbage time.

Big deal. You can find a Dexter McCluster on the street.

[aturnis]

How many first downs does McCluster have?

[ChiefsCountry]

Where does Curry rank among Nose Tackles compared to McCluster at running backs?

[BossChief]

His vision, quickness and excelleration are all very good.

Stop acting like the guy hasn't made a lot of plays for us, he has.

[KCrockaholic]

Originally Posted by BossChief

His vision, quickness and excelleration are all very good.

Stop acting like the guy hasn't made a lot of plays for us, he has.

Waaaay off on that one.

[aturnis]

Originally Posted by Omega

I don't care about stats.

Watch him play. What does he do that is special?

Does he make guys miss? Once a month, maybe.

Does he have elite speed? Hell no.

Does he have good vision? Again, no. If it's not a draw play with a giant hole, he gains nothing.

He has some yards this year because Charles got hurt and we have no capable backup, and he's the king of garbage time.

Big deal. You can find a Dexter McCluster on the street.

When is McCluster put in a position to succeed behind the 30th ranked run blocking line? Everyone knows how the draw is coming, yet we keep running it. Hell, he only has a prayer on 50% of the draw plays he gets. The other 50% he has defenders in his face right away. He has been crucial when it comes time to move the chains.

[Hammock Parties]

DMC = one of the least elusive players in the league.

I will say no more.

[KCrockaholic]

Anyone who actually thinks McCluster is ANY kind of threat doesn't watch the Chiefs close enough. McCluster doesn't do anything good for the team, and he has 1 god damn play to his name that is worth a shit. He's not a good player and he's a liability every time he touches the ball. I'd rather have Dion Lewis.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by KCrockaholic

Anyone who actually thinks McCluster is ANY kind of threat doesn't watch the Chiefs close enough. McCluster doesn't do anything good for the team, and he has 1 god damn play to his name that is worth a shit. He's not a good player and he's a liability every time he touches the ball. I'd rather have Dion Lewis.

Like I said last week, people were impressed by his 32-yard rush....all he did was take the handoff and run through a giant hole in a straight line until he ran out of bounds.

Nothing impressive about that play at all.

The only time I've been impressed with McCluster this year was on two catches in OT against the Chargers.

[BossChief]

On average per attempt, DMC probably gets hit by multiple defenders behind the line as any player in the league.

I'm sure that throws that whole "elusiveness" rating way off.