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The Kansas City Chiefs finished the 2012 season with a 2-14 record, which was the worst record in the league.
The Chiefs underwent major offseason changes on all levels this offseason, and signed Andy Reid to be the new head coach. Kansas City also brought in quarterback Alex Smith, wide receiver Donnie Avery, tight end Anthony Fasano, linebackers Frank Zombo and Akeem Jordan and defensive backs Sean Smith and Dunta Robinson.
The Chiefs parted ways with running back Peyton Hillis, tight end Kevin Boss, offensive tackle Eric Winston, defensive tackle Glen Dorsey and safety Javier Arenas.
Kansas City is now in the Andy Reid era, and the Chiefs look to be a much better team this year than they were last year.
Here is the Kansas City Chiefs 2013-2014 NFL season preview.
Offense
The Chiefs had one of the league’s best running games last season, but the worst passing offense too.
Alex Smith is a definite upgrade over Matt Cassell at QB, but he isn’t an elite quarterback by any means. Smith is a good game manager, and that can only take a team so far. Having a good running game definitely helps, but don’t expect Smith to put up huge numbers this year.
Jamaal Charles is an animal, and should put up big numbers again in 2013. Even though Andy Reid is a pass -first kind of coach, unless he’s stupid, will realize that Charles is his best offensive player and will feed him the ball 20-25 times a game.
The Chiefs receiving corps is decent, but it’s nothing to really get excited about.
Dwayne Bowe had a great 2010 season (15 touchdowns), but only has eight TDs over the past two seasons. That’s partly due to the abysmal play of KC quarterbacks the past two years, but it also shows that the 2010 season was sort of a fluke. Bowe isn’t bad, but he isn’t a top receiver in this league.
Donnie Avery is the No. 2 receiver and Anthony Fasano is the starting tight end. These guys are solid, but nothing special.
The Chiefs offensive line did a great job opening up holes for Charles last year, but didn’t do such a good job keeping the QB upright. This unit played decent in 2012, but needs to play better in 2013.
Alex Smith is a definite upgrade over Matt Cassell at QB, but he isn’t an elite quarterback by any means. Smith is a good game manager, and that can only take a team so far. Having a good running game definitely helps, but don’t expect Smith to put up huge numbers this year.
Jamaal Charles is an animal, and should put up big numbers again in 2013. Even though Andy Reid is a pass -first kind of coach, unless he’s stupid, will realize that Charles is his best offensive player and will feed him the ball 20-25 times a game.
The Chiefs receiving corps is decent, but it’s nothing to really get excited about.
Dwayne Bowe had a great 2010 season (15 touchdowns), but only has eight TDs over the past two seasons. That’s partly due to the abysmal play of KC quarterbacks the past two years, but it also shows that the 2010 season was sort of a fluke. Bowe isn’t bad, but he isn’t a top receiver in this league.
Donnie Avery is the No. 2 receiver and Anthony Fasano is the starting tight end. These guys are solid, but nothing special.
The Chiefs offensive line did a great job opening up holes for Charles last year, but didn’t do such a good job keeping the QB upright. This unit played decent in 2012, but needs to play better in 2013.
Defense
Kansas City did a pretty good job against the pass last season, but teams ran the ball at will against them.
KC’s defensive line is made up of Tyson Jackson, Dontari Poe and Mike DeVito. Jackson and Poe are both former high first-round picks that haven’t really lived up to expectations yet.
2012 was Poe’s rookie season, and he recorded 38 tackles but didn’t have a single sack. In KC’s 3-4 defense, these guys are supposed to take on blockers to free up the linebackers, but they’ll need to apply more pressure in 2013 for this defense to take the next step forward.
Outside linebackers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali combined for 19 of the team’s 27 sacks in 2012. These two are the only real pass rushers on this defense, and will need to match their production from last season in 2013.
Derrick Johnson and Akeem Jordan will play the middle linebacker positions, and Johnson had a great season last year, recording more than 120 tackles. Jordan comes over from Philadelphia where he played sparingly last year.
The Chiefs secondary should be good in 2013.
Eric Berry is one of the best safeties in the league, and he’ll line up next to Kendrick Lewis, a first-time starter. Brandon Flowers starts at one cornerback position, and newly acquired Sean Smith will start at the other with Daunta Robinson as the slot CB.
All three of these guys are talented, and if they can stay healthy, should form one of the better secondaries in the NFL.
KC’s defensive line is made up of Tyson Jackson, Dontari Poe and Mike DeVito. Jackson and Poe are both former high first-round picks that haven’t really lived up to expectations yet.
2012 was Poe’s rookie season, and he recorded 38 tackles but didn’t have a single sack. In KC’s 3-4 defense, these guys are supposed to take on blockers to free up the linebackers, but they’ll need to apply more pressure in 2013 for this defense to take the next step forward.
Outside linebackers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali combined for 19 of the team’s 27 sacks in 2012. These two are the only real pass rushers on this defense, and will need to match their production from last season in 2013.
Derrick Johnson and Akeem Jordan will play the middle linebacker positions, and Johnson had a great season last year, recording more than 120 tackles. Jordan comes over from Philadelphia where he played sparingly last year.
The Chiefs secondary should be good in 2013.
Eric Berry is one of the best safeties in the league, and he’ll line up next to Kendrick Lewis, a first-time starter. Brandon Flowers starts at one cornerback position, and newly acquired Sean Smith will start at the other with Daunta Robinson as the slot CB.
All three of these guys are talented, and if they can stay healthy, should form one of the better secondaries in the NFL.
2013 Prediction: 7-9
The Chiefs will be much better in 2013 than they were in 2012, but it’s almost impossible to be worse.
This team has a lot of talent, but the Alex Smith-average receiving corps combination doesn’t scare opposing defenses. Andy Reid will need to rely heavily on Jamaal Charles to be the work horse for this offensive unit.
Defensively, it all comes down to the pass rush. If they can get more pressure on the opposing QBs, this will be a solid unit. If they can’t, they’ll be giving up a lot of yards every Sunday afternoon.
Wins: @Jacksonville, @Tennessee, Oakland, @Buffalo, San Diego, @Washington, @San Diego
Losses: Dallas, @Philadelphia, New York (Giants), Houston, Cleveland, @Denver, Denver, @Oakland, Indianapolis
This team has a lot of talent, but the Alex Smith-average receiving corps combination doesn’t scare opposing defenses. Andy Reid will need to rely heavily on Jamaal Charles to be the work horse for this offensive unit.
Defensively, it all comes down to the pass rush. If they can get more pressure on the opposing QBs, this will be a solid unit. If they can’t, they’ll be giving up a lot of yards every Sunday afternoon.
Wins: @Jacksonville, @Tennessee, Oakland, @Buffalo, San Diego, @Washington, @San Diego
Losses: Dallas, @Philadelphia, New York (Giants), Houston, Cleveland, @Denver, Denver, @Oakland, Indianapolis
