The reigning Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs began their 2020 campaign in the win column following a 34-20 victory over the Houston Texans in Week one.
Going into Week 2, the Chiefs will look to keep it that way as they travel to Los Angeles, California to face the Chargers on Sunday afternoon.
Since 2015, Kansas City has won 9 of their last 10 games against the Chargers, averaging 28.8 points per game on offense. While defensively allowing an average of 17.8 points per game.
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes is also 3-1 against the Chargers in his career with 8 TDs and two picks. Sunday will provide Mahomes an opportunity to crush yet, another record needing just 377 yards to become the fastest player in NFL history to reach 10,000 yards passing in his career.
Mahomes has plenty of weapons on offense to help him achieve that milestone while also leading the Chiefs to victory. One of those is rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who became one of four players in the last three decades to rush for 130 yards and a score in their NFL debut.
Edwards-Helaire ran for 138 yards and a TD in Week One against the Texans and could be a major contributor on Sunday. The Chiefs recorded at least 100 yards on the ground in 8 of their last 10 meetings against L.A., including nearly 300 rushing yards combined in their two matchups last season.
The Chiefs have had a dominant offensive presence whenever they take on the Chargers, as of late, and Sunday afternoon should be no different.
What will be different, however, will be the man under center for Los Angeles. The Chiefs will be facing a new Chargers signal-caller for the first time in 16 years with long-time QB Philip Rivers moving on to Indianapolis over the off-season. That means veteran Tyrod Taylor is now the man leading the bolts for the 2020 season.
The Chargers are in good hands with Taylor under center. One thing the 31-year-old quarterback has proved over his career is he knows how to protect the football. In fact, from 2015 to 2017, the last time he was a starter, Taylor had the second-lowest interception rating (1.3) in the NFL behind Tom Brady. Taylor also had a 92.5 passer rating in that time with 51 touchdowns and 8,857 passing yards.
Kansas City will also need to keep track of running back Austin Ekeler coming out of the backfield. Ekeler has become one of the most dynamic players in the NFL, contributing more than 1500 yards of offense in 2019, including 17 receptions for 150 yards in two games against the Chiefs.
Ekeler has also caught 92 passes last season, ranking second in the NFL among running backs. This will be a player to watch as the Chiefs defense prepares to dominate the line of scrimmage.
One more thing the Chiefs will need to prepare for will be L.A.’s ferocious pass-rushing duo in Joey Bosa and Melvin Ingram. Both defensive ends combined for 11 pressures last week against the Cincinnati Bengals, and Bosa was graded by Pro Football Focus as the third-best edge-rusher from Week One.
Some good news, however, is Kansas City’s offensive line has kept Bosa in check over the previous four meetings and does not have a sack in any of those games. Let’s hope Bosa’s dry spell against the Chiefs continues going into this one.
On the other side, Kansas City has put together a good defensive resume. The Chiefs pass rush had 23 total pressures against Houston’s Deshaun Watson last Thursday, along with seven QB hits and four sacks.
Another impressive element on Kansas City’s defense is in the secondary. Kansas City will be without their starting corners Bashaud Breeland and Charvarious Ward this week, meaning second-year corner Rashad Fenton and rookie L’Jarius Sneed will be on the outside defending receivers, Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.
Sneed held his own in his NFL debut, allowing only two of seven targets that came his way for completions. The rookie also had two passes defended, and thanks to Kansas City’s pass rush, got the first interception of his career.
After a sound victory over the Texans on banner night, the Chiefs will go on their first road trip of the season. Kansas City is 32-12 against AFC West opponents since Andy Reid took over as head coach and won 27 of their last 30 matchups against division rivals.
The Chiefs will look to improve their record to 2-0 with a victory against the Chargers and continue their title defense on an undefeated /note.
