On Saturday, the Chiefs must have answers for the Texans’ pass rush

Houston’s defensive front was a key in its success during the Wild Card round.

The Kansas City Chiefs will take on the Houston Texans in an AFC Divisional round matchup at 3:30 p.m. Arrowhead Time on Saturday afternoon.

While the Chiefs will be coming off their bye week, the Texans will walk onto GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on the heels of a 32-12 Wild Card victory over the Los Angeles Chargers, in which Houston forced four interceptions by quarterback Justin Herbert — and also recorded four sacks.

Let’s consider how Kansas City could meet this challenge on Saturday.

Elite on the edge

The Texans’ edge rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Danielle Hunter are among the league’s top pass-rushing duos. Anderson recorded 11 regular-season sacks, while Hunter tallied 12 during his first season in Houston.

In the Wild Card round, Anderson recorded one-and-a-half sacks, showing off his blend of speed and athleticism off the edge.

This snap is just about as easy as it gets for a pass rusher. Anderson is lined up wide on the edge as the Texans put six players on the line against an empty Chargers formation.

Before the snap, the Los Angeles center throws a hand in the air, likely signaling that they are in “alert” protection to handle the most dangerous rushers. On the snap, the right-side linebacker and EDGE both drop in coverage, while Anderson and the left-side linebacker bring heat.

The right tackle “squeezes” down to take the linebacker, since he has the fastest path to the quarterback up the middle. Usually, this rule of empty protection allows the quarterback enough time to beat the edge rusher with his throw — but in this case, Anderson was far too athletic; he closes to give Herbert a nasty hit.

While Hunter didn’t record a sack last Saturday, he did collect five pressures that impacted Herbert’s ability to deliver the football.

A strong, lanky veteran, Hunter has enough flexibility to bend his way around the arc. As Anderson goes with a speed rush, Hunter works a long-arm power rush that moves the right tackle into the pocket. Both players are just a little late to collect a sack, but they still move Herbert from his spot to force an incomplete pass.

Interior pass rush

Houston’s interior pass rush also had a strong game. The athletic interior group — veterans Denico Autry, Mario Edwards and Tim Settle — went to work on a more bulky Chargers interior designed for the running game. While all three are undersized by traditional standards, they can win with quickness and athleticism.

Autry joined Anderson with a sack and a half, while Edwards recorded one. Settle collected three pressures.

Here we see Autry lined up as a 5-technique, allowing him to build steam on the snap as he powers his way back to the B-gap. He times his strike perfectly, hitting the right guard with a beautiful long arm that knocks him off his feet. Herbert gets the pass off, but the interior pressure forces a bad throw.

Autry had one of the best games of his career, continuing to win with athletic moves against the Los Angeles interior.

Here — with the right guard leaning forward — Autry deploys a well-timed swim move to penetrate the pocket. Herbert tries to escape, but Autry slings him down.

Line of scrimmage movement

With such a loaded front, the schemes that head coach DeMeco Ryans and defensive coordinator Matt Burke have devised make the defensive line tough to beat. Their pre-snap pressure looks help the Texans confuse opponents.

On this play, Houston puts three linemen to one side of the center and just one on the opposite edge. The Chargers respond with a slide-right protection, making the center, right guard and right tackle responsible for the gaps to their right.

Lined up as the nose tackle, Edwards goes to the opposite A-gap, where the left guard isn’t ready. Edwards blows through untouched, leading to what must be the easiest sack of his career.

The Texans can also amplify the front’s athletic ability with post-snap movement.

On this play, the Texans run an E/T twist on one side of the line, using a walkup linebacker in the tackle’s role; swapping a bigger player for a more agile player speeds up the protection and gets more athletes on the field.

On the other side, they run a “super loop” with Anderson. Both interior rushers slant to the outside, while Anderson loops all the way through the opposite A-gap. The center barely gets a hand on him, so Anderson breaks free and nearly forces a sack.

The bottom line

Kansas City must be ready for Houston’s arsenal of pass rushers. While the Chiefs only gave up one sack when these teams met in Week 16, Mahomes was pressured multiple times.

As we know, the Chiefs face an important decision about whom to play at left tackle. How the coaching staff thinks Joe Thuney and D.J. Humphries will fare against this string defensive line will play a big part in that call.

One thing is certain: keeping quarterback Patrick Mahomes on his feet will be one of the primary keys in a Kansas City victory.