Another year, another loss, and another off-season of deep soul-searching for the Kansas City Chiefs. All in all, it was a good year. The Chiefs won the AFC West despite a resurgent Oakland Raiders squad. They won 12 games and made it to their first Divisional Round berth in years. However, that doesn’t hide the fact that they lost, and now they have some off-season work to do.
Kansas City Chiefs Off-season Woes Are Deeper Than Alex Smith
Like many fans, this was a bitter loss for me to witness. A successful season and a very winnable revenge game set the perfect script for a rematch against New England. Alas, the Chiefs can no longer hide their offensive weaknesses.
I am one of those guys who actually likes Alex Smith. He is an accurate passer who mitigates risk and has a habit of winning games. Despite being a consistent passer, he is still deficient in deep passes, although he is capable of it; ask the offensive weapons of Tyreek Hill, Travis Kelce, and Jeremy Maclin. However, it isn’t often that we see a big pass, and you won’t often go and see a highlight reel of him like you will Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, or Ben Roethlisberger.
This isn’t all his fault though, as a lot of it is on the offensive system in place. The Kansas City Chiefs just went an entire season without any real offensive coordinator. Andy Reid makes the calls, with Brad Childress and Matt Nagy owning the “dual coordinator” spot.
It is Time to Establish an Offensive System
The Chiefs own one of the NFL’s best defenses. They were tied in the regular season in forced turnovers. They have playmakers in each area: defensive line, linebacker, and defensive back. They have a coordinator in Bob Sutton who has a great deal of experience. Sutton also calls the plays. It may be time to replicate the same system with offense. A dedicated offensive coordinator would bring stability to that side of the ball. If Reid lets him call the plays, then all the better for it. The playmakers on offense, including Smith, would also have more room to get creative.
Smith’s red zone interceptions hamstrung the offense when it made it to the end zone. When asked, Reid said those plays were scripted. To quote a certain WWI strategist, “All plans go out the door upon first contact with the enemy.” Let Smith make the red zone calls.
Chiefs Need Change
Ultimately we as a fan base will have to accept that the quarterback position will have to change hands. Smith has served well, but his time is running out. The Chiefs must address this issue before they enter the 2017 season. Enter Nick Foles. Yes, I said Nick Foles.
Foles had his best season in 2013, finishing the season with a 119.2 QBR. Reid is also the coach who drafted him. Foles had a record touchdown- interception ratio which was only this season broken by Brady. Foles had a great game replacing an injured Smith against Indianapolis. Yes, he followed that up with a poor performance against Jacksonville, but still the sample size is too small to make any clear judgement on who this man really is as a Chief.
The Chiefs can go for a quarterback in the draft as a long term option, but short term, Nick Foles can add a couple years to the timeframe before the long term solution has to be made. Starting Foles for a year would also mean the Chiefs would have to cut Smith, which would carry a heavy cost in dead money. This means that starting Foles is not likely, however, but considering Smith’s reliability, this isn’t necessarily an immediate need.
Main Photo:
