Chiefs headlines for Tuesday, January 14
The latest
NFL Divisional Round: Biggest immediate question for advancing/eliminated playoff teams | NFL.com
Will all that rest be a good or bad thing?
The Chiefs haven’t played a meaningful game since they beat Pittsburgh on Christmas Day to clinch the top seed in the AFC. Kansas City sat its most essential starters in a season-ending loss to Denver and then relaxed during a first-round bye. Essentially, by the time Saturday’s Houston-Kansas City comes around, the Chiefs will have essentially enjoyed 23 days of rest. It’s worth wondering if all that time off will result in a sluggish start against Texans, but in the notorious words of Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, that’s just not how this team rolls. For one thing, Kansas City needed the bye as much as any team in the postseason. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes finished the season with a high ankle sprain, All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones didn’t even play against Pittsburgh because of a calf strain, and there are multiple stars on this team over the age of 30 (including tight end Travis Kelce, wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins and All-Pro guard Joe Thuney, who’s been playing left tackle over the past month). Kansas City’s regular-season bye came in Week 6. You’re damn right they loved not playing in the Wild Card Round. Just as important to note is Reid’s record when coming off a bye. It’s 29-3. The man knows how to use that extra time to prepare his team for whatever challenges the next opponent might create. That doesn’t mean crazy things can’t happen, as the Chiefs are about to play a rematch against a Texans team that can cause a lot of problems defensively. It simply means it’s a foolish idea to bet against this team not being ready to play. Kansas City has won three Super Bowls in five years for a reason.
Carl Cheffers and All NFL Referee Assignments for 2025 Divisional Round Playoffs | Bleacher Report
Super Bowl referee usually comes from this group. Cheffers has done two of the last four. https://t.co/IatHIzOw8g
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) January 13, 2025
In the AFC’s other matchup, the Chiefs will begin their title defense against a Texans team that finished the regular season just 10-7 after a 5-1 start but did look fantastic against the Los Angeles Chargers in the Wild Card Round. The key will be whether DeMeco Ryans’ defense can pester Patrick Mahomes into a few game-altering mistakes. History would suggest that Mahomes will be more than up for the task, much as he was during a 27-19 Week 16 win over the Texans.
The Winners and Losers of NFL Wild-Card Weekend | The Ringer
Ryans doesn’t just coordinate the defense, though, and his overall job performance must account for failures elsewhere on the team. His handling of the offensive coaching staff will be worth monitoring over the offseason. Offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik, who followed Ryans from San Francisco to Houston, has had two full seasons to build an offense to match the emerging force Ryans has built on the other side of the ball. It hasn’t happened, and the Texans offense and quarterback C.J. Stroud, the franchise’s most important piece, seem to be heading in the wrong direction. Sticking with Slowik for too long could undo all of the impressive work Ryans has done over his first two seasons.
If Houston’s season ends next week in Kansas City, the offensive issues— particularly pre-snap penalties and the useless run game—will likely be the reason. But we shouldn’t make the same mistake former Jets coach Rex Ryan did last week when he said the Texans game would be a “bye week” for the Chargers.
Don’t underestimate the importance of this football position | Kansas City Star
The long snapper. The person who hikes the ball to punters and to holders for extra points and field goals. Long snappers also become blockers when the opposing team returns the kick after a punt.
It’s a position that requires speed, precision and the ability to perform under pressure. A long snap has to go 15 yards for a punt or about 7 yards for an extra point or a field goal. And in a sport where inches are crucial, a faulty long snap can result in a blocked punt or missed field goal and mean the difference between winning and losing.
“I think it’s a pretty tough position,” former New England Patriots legendary coach Bill Belichick said when asked about long snappers in a 2021 interview. “You know, nobody knows or cares who the snapper is until there’s a bad snap, and all of a sudden it’s a front-page story.”
The Complete Guide to the Long Snapper Position on throwdeeppublishing.com describes the long snapper’s role this way:
“On extra points and field goals, their job is to snap it back to the holder in the blink of an eye with pinpoint accuracy — giving the kicker plenty of time as the onslaught of the defense looks to get a hand on the kick.”
The snap requires perfection, it says, with minimal room for error.
In a recent Instagram video, the content creator claimed, ”I found proof that every Super Bowl in history has been predetermined.” He then revealed, ”Even this year’s champion is spoiled” and displayed the logos of the Chiefs, 49ers, Bills, Eagles, Packers, and Jets.
“Remember last year we noticed something strange was going on with Super Bowl logo colors in recent years?” Mike asked and then explained, ”Sure enough, the prophecy came true with this reddish-purple logo,” referring to the colors of Kansas City and San Francisco.
He explained that he checked the logos of every Super Bowl and found that ”at least one of the teams playing in 54 of those Super Bowls had at least one team with a color featured in that team’s logo.” According to the Instagrammer, one of the few times his theory fails is in Super Bowl XVIII, which was won by the Raiders.
Round 1 – Pick 31
Jared Ivey DE
Ole Miss • Sr • 6’6” / 285 lbsJared Ivey is the kind of jumbo defensive end whom Steve Spagnuolo loves. He can easily reduce down in obvious passing situations and rush against guards and centers. Ivey had a massive breakout campaign after consistently flashing high-end ability his first four seasons.
2025 NFL Mock Draft: Latest First Round Predictions Entering Divisional Playoffs | The 33rd Team
Derrick Harmon, IDL, Oregon
Height: 6’5”
Weight: 310 lbs.
Class: Junior
Fit: Defensive tackles currently under contract in Kansas City in 2025:1. Chris Jones
– End of list
Kansas City’s defensive prowess is well-established under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. But the Chiefs would be wise to get some more disruptive talent in the pipeline to disrupt opposing offenses — particularly with Denver looking to be relevant once again and the Chargers building off of a return to the playoffs in the AFC West. Harmon is an active talent and has enough versatility to project to a 3-down role at the next level, but his best reps come with opportunities to attack the ball. He should have plenty of opportunities one-on-one in this defense with a player like Jones lining up next to him.
Around the NFL
Source – Mike McCarthy won’t return as Cowboys’ coach | ESPN
McCarthy’s contract with the Cowboys expired last Wednesday but the team held an exclusive negotiating window with the coach until Tuesday at midnight. However, the sides have not had any negotiations regarding a new deal, sources told Schefter on Monday.
The Chicago Bears and New Orleans Saints are expected to be interested in speaking with him regarding their vacancies, sources told Schefter. Last week, the Bears had an official request for permission to speak with McCarthy denied by the Cowboys.
Vikings-Rams on Wild Card Weekend Monday: What We Learned from Los Angeles’ 27-9 win | NFL.com
Rams defense dominates Vikings’ high-powered offense. Minnesota entered Monday night’s game with the NFL’s sixth-ranked passing offense, ninth-ranked scoring offense and an elite receiving duo in Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison. They finished with 163 passing yards, 6 for 17 on third down and just nine points. Los Angeles devised a masterful defensive game plan for their rematch with the Vikings, restricting Sam Darnold with man coverage (he finished 4 for 12 for 64 yards, one touchdown and one interception against man coverage) and confounding him with a variety of pressures generated by their excellent defensive front and defensive backs. Eight Rams registered at least half a sack on Monday night, and two of those were recorded by defensive backs. With the secondary complicating the picture for Darnold, Rams rushers were free to chase down the uncertain quarterback, forcing two turnovers in the process. The second — a fumble forced by Ahkello Witherspoon and recovered by rookie Pro Bowler Jared Verse, who returned it for a touchdown — felt like a decisive blow, even if it occurred in the first half. As we eventually learned, Minnesota lacked the capability to overcome defensive coordinator Chris Shula’s plans, which worked to near perfection and produced a statement win for the Rams, who added two more turnovers to their plus-eight margin since their bye week and recorded their 10th win in 13 games.
In case you missed it on Arrowhead Pride
Chiefs open as favorites over Texans in postseason’s Divisional round
On Saturday, the (15-2) Kansas City Chiefs play the (10-7) Houston Texans in their Divisional round playoff matchup on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Arrowhead Time on ESPN and ABC — locally on KMBC/9.
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the first-seeded Chiefs are 7.5-point home favorites over the fourth-seeded Texans.
The two teams will be just four weeks out from their Week 16 matchup, in which the (13-1) Kansas City squad opened as a 2.5 home underdog to the (9-5) Houston team. The Chiefs won that game 27-19. In the Week 18 matchup against the Denver Broncos, Kansas City opened as an 8.5-point underdog. Resting its starters in the regular season’s final game, the team recorded a 38-0 loss.
In Saturday’s matchup, I like the Single-Game Parlay where the Chiefs cover 9.5 points, Travis Kelce collects at least one 20-yard reception and scores a touchdown. FanDuel currently has that SGP at +697.
Social media to make you think
I was rewatching a bit of the 2000 NFC title game where Giants stadium just exploded while they destroyed the Vikings and I got to thiniking: What is the loudest crowd for a game in modern NFL history? Say 2000 and onward.
— Kevin Clark (@bykevinclark) January 13, 2025
Chiefs titans Afc Champ Game after Sammy watkins TD
— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) January 13, 2025
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