CASSEL, CHARLES & BOWE TOO MUCH FOR SEATTLE IN 42-24 WIN
I've got the Chargers-Colts game on as I write this & I was thinking it sure would've been nice to play the Colts now instead of the 4th game of the season. Indy is just a shell of it's former self, racked with injuries. But enough wishful thinking, with a win today in Seattle, the Chiefs won their 7th game of the season. That was the victory total I predicted for Kansas City in the pre-season. I'm happy to admit I underestimated this team, really happy.
To say Kansas City overwhelmed the Seahawks would be a major understatement. The Seahawks didn't have an answer for the Chiefs' big three, QB Matt Cassel(22 of 32 for 233-yards & 4 touchdown passes), RB Jamaal Charles(22 carries for 173-yards & a touchdown) & WR Dewayne Bowe(13 receptions for 170-yards & 3 touchdowns). Except for a Charles fumble, the offense played a near-perfect game. This offense was without LT Brandon Albert & RB/WR Dexter McCluster. It was nice to give them an additional week of rest & rehab while still being able to produce big numbers & win.
Kansas City amassed 503 total yards of offense, 270 on the ground. Seattle had a total of 20-yards rushing, that's right, I said twenty. Now while I'll admit the Seahawks aren't New England or Atlanta, holding any team in the national Football League to just 20-yards on the ground is an accomplishment. The Chiefs were scary converting on 3rd down, 11 of 17 while Seattle was held to 3 of 12. Kansas City held the ball for over forty minutes versus under nineteen for Seattle. This is total domination, pure & simple. Two special teams foul ups, a blocked field goal & a blocked punt returned for a score & a blown coverage for an 87-yard touchdown pass, was all Seattle could muster today.
Cassel's improvement since week one is amazing, once again he didn't turn the ball over or take a sack. Except for his 4 scrambles, he was only touched one other time. Charlie Weis has more confidence in his quarterback & it shows. They are starting to throw the ball downfield with more regularity. With the emergence of Bowe as a top flight NFL wideout, Cassel has someone he can rely on to not only get open & be where he's supposed to be, but catch the ball. Cassel is amongst the league leaders with 22 touchdown passes & he is tied with Tom Brady for the fewest interceptions thrown, four. I wonder what Pete Carroll was thinking as his former backup QB at USC shredded his Seattle defense? Cassel was a 6th round pick 4 years ago while Carroll's USC Heisman winner, Matt Leinart, languishes on the bench in Houston as the Texans' 3rd string quarterback.
Jamaal Charles, who wasn't getting enough touches earlier in the season, got enough today, 22, to push him over the 1,000-yard mark in Kansas City's 11th game. His total of 1,021 trails only Arian Foster of Houston amongst the league leaders. His 6.3 yards-per-carry is frightening, a full yard more per carry than Foster. A couple of times today he was one step from breaking a big one, his longest run was just 29-yards. His backfield mate, Thomas Jones, chipped in with another 68-yards rushing & 14 catching the ball out of the backfield. Their 270-yard total pushed them even further out front of all other teams in the league. When you can run the ball so effectively it opens up the passing game, especially downfield with play-action.
Bowe has been nothing short of sensational for about six weeks. Except for a dropped pass in Oakland on a crucial 3rd down, he has been a dominating the competition. Did you ever think we'd see the day Bowe was in the mix near the top of all receivers in the league? I'm glad he finally put his game together, he is now a receiver other teams have to account for on every snap. Tony Moeaki caught only one pass today but it was good for a 6-yard touchdown pass. If Charlie Weis can work the big rookie tight end into the game plan more & more, Bowe should only get better. Two or three successful throws to Verran Tucker help too. Throw McCluster back into the mix when he's completely healthy gives them another weapon with game breaking speed.
For a defense playing without CB Brandon Flowers & safety Jon Mcgraw, except for the one breakdown, played very well. They were unable to mount a consistent pass rush, only two sacks & 6 QB hits, but remember the Seahawks had the ball less than 19-minutes in this game, so they didn't have a lot of snaps. Completely shutting down Seattle's running game was huge, when they gave up trying to run the ball, the pass rush started to reach quarterback Matt Hasselback. Jackie Bates, subbing for Flowers, was also injured, so Romeo Crennell moved rookie Javier Arenas outside from his normal nickel spot & he responded very well. A concern at safety developed as Kendrick Lewis was limping thruout the 4th quarter tho he stayed in the game & intercepted Hasselback. Travis Daniels took over at nickel back & he too got an interception.
I feel like I need to acknowledge Shaun Smith for the afternoon he had in Seattle. The 330-pound defensive lineman became the first NFL player to rush for a touchdown(he had a 1-yard plunge for a score lined up as a goal line fullback) & record a quarterback sack in the same game since William "The Refrigerator" Perry did it back in 1985.
Like I said, Seattle isn't new England or Atlanta, but the Chiefs dominated on both sides of the ball. This is what is expected of playoff teams, beat lesser teams on the road. An opportunity for revenge & their 8th win comes to Arrowhead next Sunday with the Denver Broncos. Then their biggest game of the season follows with a trip to San Diego. To be honest, the road trip to St. Louis the following week will be just as important & the Rams could be a handful. Then the season shifts back to Arrowhead for the final two games with Tennessee & Oakland. Like Kansas City, San Diego faces only one team with a winning record right the rest of the way & that game is against each other. The Chiefs have a 1-game lead in the AFC West, as long as they continue to win, they can't be caught. Continue to improve, stay on the plus side in turnovers & get Albert, Flowers & McCluster back, we might be celebrating a division title come January 2nd.
To say Kansas City overwhelmed the Seahawks would be a major understatement. The Seahawks didn't have an answer for the Chiefs' big three, QB Matt Cassel(22 of 32 for 233-yards & 4 touchdown passes), RB Jamaal Charles(22 carries for 173-yards & a touchdown) & WR Dewayne Bowe(13 receptions for 170-yards & 3 touchdowns). Except for a Charles fumble, the offense played a near-perfect game. This offense was without LT Brandon Albert & RB/WR Dexter McCluster. It was nice to give them an additional week of rest & rehab while still being able to produce big numbers & win.
Kansas City amassed 503 total yards of offense, 270 on the ground. Seattle had a total of 20-yards rushing, that's right, I said twenty. Now while I'll admit the Seahawks aren't New England or Atlanta, holding any team in the national Football League to just 20-yards on the ground is an accomplishment. The Chiefs were scary converting on 3rd down, 11 of 17 while Seattle was held to 3 of 12. Kansas City held the ball for over forty minutes versus under nineteen for Seattle. This is total domination, pure & simple. Two special teams foul ups, a blocked field goal & a blocked punt returned for a score & a blown coverage for an 87-yard touchdown pass, was all Seattle could muster today.
Cassel's improvement since week one is amazing, once again he didn't turn the ball over or take a sack. Except for his 4 scrambles, he was only touched one other time. Charlie Weis has more confidence in his quarterback & it shows. They are starting to throw the ball downfield with more regularity. With the emergence of Bowe as a top flight NFL wideout, Cassel has someone he can rely on to not only get open & be where he's supposed to be, but catch the ball. Cassel is amongst the league leaders with 22 touchdown passes & he is tied with Tom Brady for the fewest interceptions thrown, four. I wonder what Pete Carroll was thinking as his former backup QB at USC shredded his Seattle defense? Cassel was a 6th round pick 4 years ago while Carroll's USC Heisman winner, Matt Leinart, languishes on the bench in Houston as the Texans' 3rd string quarterback.
Jamaal Charles, who wasn't getting enough touches earlier in the season, got enough today, 22, to push him over the 1,000-yard mark in Kansas City's 11th game. His total of 1,021 trails only Arian Foster of Houston amongst the league leaders. His 6.3 yards-per-carry is frightening, a full yard more per carry than Foster. A couple of times today he was one step from breaking a big one, his longest run was just 29-yards. His backfield mate, Thomas Jones, chipped in with another 68-yards rushing & 14 catching the ball out of the backfield. Their 270-yard total pushed them even further out front of all other teams in the league. When you can run the ball so effectively it opens up the passing game, especially downfield with play-action.
Bowe has been nothing short of sensational for about six weeks. Except for a dropped pass in Oakland on a crucial 3rd down, he has been a dominating the competition. Did you ever think we'd see the day Bowe was in the mix near the top of all receivers in the league? I'm glad he finally put his game together, he is now a receiver other teams have to account for on every snap. Tony Moeaki caught only one pass today but it was good for a 6-yard touchdown pass. If Charlie Weis can work the big rookie tight end into the game plan more & more, Bowe should only get better. Two or three successful throws to Verran Tucker help too. Throw McCluster back into the mix when he's completely healthy gives them another weapon with game breaking speed.
For a defense playing without CB Brandon Flowers & safety Jon Mcgraw, except for the one breakdown, played very well. They were unable to mount a consistent pass rush, only two sacks & 6 QB hits, but remember the Seahawks had the ball less than 19-minutes in this game, so they didn't have a lot of snaps. Completely shutting down Seattle's running game was huge, when they gave up trying to run the ball, the pass rush started to reach quarterback Matt Hasselback. Jackie Bates, subbing for Flowers, was also injured, so Romeo Crennell moved rookie Javier Arenas outside from his normal nickel spot & he responded very well. A concern at safety developed as Kendrick Lewis was limping thruout the 4th quarter tho he stayed in the game & intercepted Hasselback. Travis Daniels took over at nickel back & he too got an interception.
I feel like I need to acknowledge Shaun Smith for the afternoon he had in Seattle. The 330-pound defensive lineman became the first NFL player to rush for a touchdown(he had a 1-yard plunge for a score lined up as a goal line fullback) & record a quarterback sack in the same game since William "The Refrigerator" Perry did it back in 1985.
Like I said, Seattle isn't new England or Atlanta, but the Chiefs dominated on both sides of the ball. This is what is expected of playoff teams, beat lesser teams on the road. An opportunity for revenge & their 8th win comes to Arrowhead next Sunday with the Denver Broncos. Then their biggest game of the season follows with a trip to San Diego. To be honest, the road trip to St. Louis the following week will be just as important & the Rams could be a handful. Then the season shifts back to Arrowhead for the final two games with Tennessee & Oakland. Like Kansas City, San Diego faces only one team with a winning record right the rest of the way & that game is against each other. The Chiefs have a 1-game lead in the AFC West, as long as they continue to win, they can't be caught. Continue to improve, stay on the plus side in turnovers & get Albert, Flowers & McCluster back, we might be celebrating a division title come January 2nd.
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