A positive Chiefs article that is sure to piss some people off...

[htismaqe]

https://www.nfl.com/news/2020-s-10-b...-rushing-yards

2020's 10 best run-blocking teams by expected rushing yards

Rank 2
Kansas City Chiefs
9-1-0
2020 stats: 4.62 xYPC, 862 yards (4.4 YPC), 914 ERY, -52 RYOE (-0.26 per att), 6 rush TDs

Like another group ranked lower on this list, we can chalk at least some of this O-line's success up to scheme and personnel. Patrick Mahomes and his bevy of weapons make for a tough assignment for opposing defenses, which are likely to focus less on the run and more on trying to limit Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, Sammy Watkins, Mecole Hardman and Travis Kelce. But we shouldn't overlook the impact of rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who is doing his part (his RYOE per carry mark of -8 essentially means he's gaining the yards he's supposed to pick up) behind an offensive line that is playing at a premier level when it comes to run-blocking. The loss of Kelechi Osemele in Week 5 should have wrecked this unit, which, with Mitchell Schwartz going on injured reserve, only features one household name (Eric Fisher). Yet, the offensive line has been effective. Fisher is playing at a top-25 level among all NFL tackles, per Pro Football Focus, but the unit's strength has been consistency. Kansas City ranks in the upper half of the NFL as a run-blocking unit, per PFF, and is setting a per-carry bar that should have the Chiefs in the top 15 in rushing yards. Yes, the actual rushing total is lower, for which we can blame the team's understandable tendency to air it out with Mahomes. (Kansas City's running backs have combined to run the ball 198 times, eighth-least in the NFL this season, per NGS.) But the per-carry effectiveness of the ground attack still stands out.

[lostcause]

Top tier OL vs 5 more wide receivers?

Right?

[Buehler445]

I think a big thing is everybody is trying not to get beat by the pass. When we line up and need one we don’t seem to get it.

[Basileus777]

Pretty much all our rushing production comes against light boxes, so this is a really silly grade.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by Basileus777

Pretty much all our rushing production comes against light boxes, so this is a really silly grade.

Not silly at all.

It's a very specific stat and doesn't tell the whole story. It's not silly though.

[cdcox]

It is a very cool stat, but I think the NFL is misusing this by labeling it as a run blocking indicator. To see why, you have to understand the statistic.

It basically looks at the the position, speed, acceleration and direction of all 22 players on the field at the moment of the hand off. It then relates these 22*5 = 110 data points to the distribution of how many yards the play is likely to generate.

So what this says is that on the Chiefs running plays, on average, the values of the 110 data points predicts the second best expected rushing gain in the league. Most of these 110 variables may not have much to do with blocking by offensive linemen. Is a strong safety playing deep to protect against the pass? Are the linebackers leaning the wrong direction due to Tyreek being in motion? Are second level players flat-footed because the play was slow developing or because of play action? Does the running back have more momentum at the moment of handoff due to RPO? All of these will contribute positively to this statistic and may have nothing do do with blocking.

It is more a measure of the effectiveness of the overall running scheme which depends on many many factors. To call it a measure of run blocking efficiency is really misleading.

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by cdcox

It is a very cool stat, but I think the NFL is misusing this by labeling it as a run blocking indicator. To see why, you have to understand the statistic.

It basically looks at the the position, speed, acceleration and direction of all 22 players on the field at the moment of the hand off. It then relates these 22*5 = 110 data points to the distribution of how many yards the play is likely to generate.

So what this says is that on the Chiefs running plays, on average, the values of the 110 data points predicts the second best expected rushing gain in the league. Most of these 110 variables may not have much to do with blocking by offensive linemen. Is a strong safety playing deep to protect against the pass? Are the linebackers leaning the wrong direction due to Tyreek being in motion? Are second level players flat-footed because the play was slow developing or because of play action? Does the running back have more momentum at the moment of handoff due to RPO? All of these will contribute positively to this statistic and may have nothing do do with offensive line blocking.

It is more a measure of the effectiveness of the overall running scheme which depends on many many factors. To call it a measure of OL run blocking efficiency is really misleading.

Excellent synopsis. Thanks!

[mililo4cpa]

I get a sense that a lot of people (here included) only watch predominately their team and little else (maybe catch the local broadcast games or national games, etc.)

As a guy that goes back and watches nearly every game, I can definitively say that our line isn't nearly as bad as many make it out to be....there are a lot of crap lines out there, and while we have some things we need to get better at, it's far from being an average to below average line in the NFL....

[htismaqe]

Originally Posted by mililo4cpa

I get a sense that a lot of people (here included) only watch predominately their team and little else (maybe catch the local broadcast games or national games, etc.)

As a guy that goes back and watches nearly every game, I can definitively say that our line isn't nearly as bad as many make it out to be....there are a lot of crap lines out there, and while we have some things we need to get better at, it's far from being an average to below average line in the NFL....

Yep.

This team being 9-1 is far from a mirage. You just need to watch more games to see that.

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by mililo4cpa

I get a sense that a lot of people (here included) only watch predominately their team and little else (maybe catch the local broadcast games or national games, etc.)

As a guy that goes back and watches nearly every game, I can definitively say that our line isn't nearly as bad as many make it out to be....there are a lot of crap lines out there, and while we have some things we need to get better at, it's far from being an average to below average line in the NFL....

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Yep.

This team being 9-1 is far from a mirage. You just need to watch more games to see that.

Exactly.

I watch nearly every single game each week, whether it's Live, Sunday Ticket, Game Pass or the NFL Network. The Chiefs are routinely head and shoulders above every team in the NFL offensively, including Pittsburgh, that when they "struggle" to score 35 points, some Chiefs fans "think" that the offensive line "sucks" or that the defense "sucks" when they give up 31 to another powerhouse offense.

Look around the league: The Chiefs are the best team, by far, and no team is anywhere near "perfect".

[Baby Lee]

I haven't had a beef with their ENTIRE running game, just their miserable performance in 'must run' situations. The kind Marcus Allen excelled at, need a yard, get a yard move the chains. Nearly nonexistent.

[cdcox]

Originally Posted by Baby Lee

I haven't had a beef with their ENTIRE running game, just their miserable performance in 'must run' situations. The kind Marcus Allen excelled at, need a yard, get a yard move the chains. Nearly nonexistent.

We just aren’t built that way. I would rather go with a short high percentage pass.

[Baby Lee]

Originally Posted by cdcox

We just aren’t built that way. I would rather go with a short high percentage pass.

Which is why my disappointment is as much that we even try as it is that we fail.

There's tons to feel good about on the team, but a short yardage run looks like a reerun running into a brick wall.

[htismaqe]

You have to at least try to run in some of those short yardage situations.

One of the biggest things about this offense being successful is that they can keep the defense from keying on tendencies.

That being said, you'll notice how many pass plays they ran in short yardage situations against the Raiders. They were super efficient and that was a big part of it.

[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by Baby Lee

Which is why my disappointment is as much that we even try as it is that we fail.

There's tons to feel good about on the team, but a short yardage run looks like a reerun running into a brick wall.

I didn't find that to be the case at all in the Raiders game. It looked, to me, like our short yardage rushing had improved, which is to be expected as our rookie RB better understands the scheme and his teammates.

I haven't looked at the data, but it (at least anecdotally) appeared to have improved.

[Pitt Gorilla]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

You have to at least try to run in some of those short yardage situations.

One of the biggest things about this offense being successful is that they can keep the defense from keying on tendencies.

That being said, you'll notice how many pass plays they ran in short yardage situations against the Raiders. They were super efficient and that was a big part of it.

They did both (pass AND run), which is exactly what you should do. You can't allow the defense to know what's coming, even when you only need a yard.