Red Friday Preview: Chiefs vs. Packers

Who: Kansas City Chiefs vs. Green Bay Packers

When: Sunday, October 27 @ 7:20 PM

Where: Arrowhead Stadium

Before I delve deep into my Red Friday predictions, I have to give credit where credit is due. One of my favorite sports writers for the Kansas City Star, Sam Mellinger, has described our QB Patrick Mahomes as a “unicorn quarterback.” And I wholeheartedly agree. Mahomes is some kind of mythical creature.

Last week we saw him dislocate his knee whilst writhing in pain on the field. Now, a mere seven days later, we are actually discussing the possibility of him playing on Sunday. Best case scenario for a knee injury like that would be at least 3-5 weeks on the bench. Even so, there he is at practice, doing leg exercises and throwing the football, looking like the Patrick Mahomes we love. I say this with upmost admiration, the guy is just a freak! I mean, he is just not human.

Chiefs:

At the beginning of the season, this game was billed as the match up of the year. Unfortunately with Mahomes’ injury, the narrative will change a bit.  There is a possibility of using Mahomes for Sunday’s game (since he apparently refuses to rest). It makes it tough to really make a prediction for the outcome of the game without knowing the quarterback situation. Ironically, I think, that was Andy Reid’s intention all along. Obviously if we have Mahomes, then you can just copy and paste my analyses from my previous predictions. Get the ball to your play makers like Hill, Kelce and Watkins (who I have heard will play this week) and get that running game going and I think Mahomes and the boys stand a better then good chance against a Packers D that gave up 24 points to the Raiders, 24 points to the Cowboys and lost 27-34 to a very underwhelming Eagles team.

If the Chiefs play without Mahomes (which is a most likely scenario), then the plan for the offense really doesn’t change much. Not to knock on Matt Moore, but I don’t think anyone expects him to be as explosive as Mahomes. But if he can at least put the ball in the hands of his play makers, I believe they will have no problem doing the rest.

The Chiefs defense wreaked havoc on the Donkeys last week, sacking Donkeys QB Joe Flacco 9 times. Don’t get me wrong, I am taking nothing away from the Chiefs defense, and I hope it gave them some confidence moving forward, but I can’t help but wonder, was it good Chiefs defense or bad Broncos offense? I think it was honestly a bit of both. The Chiefs were playing with an aggressiveness not yet seen this season, but if we are being honest, the Broncos have a poor offensive line and Joe Flacco might as well have had pigeons landing on him, because the guy was a statue. The Chiefs’ defense will play with this new found confidence and aggression they gained flattening a sputtering Broncos team, but additionally I don’t think Aaron Rodgers will let himself be sacked 9 times.

Packers:

In the words of one of my favorite ESPN personalities Stephen A Smith, “Aaron Rodgers is a baaaaaad man” and he’s not wrong. Rodgers racked up 5 touchdowns and 429 yards with a perfect QBR last week against the Raiders. He will be looking for a repeat performance against what was a rather porous Chiefs defense until last week. Rodgers may not have any big name receivers surrounding him, but one of Rodgers greatest strengths is to make something from nothing. That sometimes isn’t too hard to do against this Chiefs team. If the Chiefs play with the same ferocity that they did last week, then they can put Rodgers on his back, create turnovers, and stuff that run. That will serve to rattle him a bit.

BQB Final Prediction:

Look, I am a football fan, and I love Patrick Mahomes. That side of me wants to see him defy the odds, defy his own injury, and suit up for Sunday Night Football at Arrowhead to send Aaron Rodgers packing (pun intended). It would make for a fantastic story to add on to the legend of Patrick Mahomes. But the other side of me wants to see him in street clothes on the bench.

His ankle was already gimpy and now his knee cap is recovering. He does not need to be right in the pathway of a 300 pound defensive end trying to flatten him. If that were to happen, he could suffer another injury or even worsen his current recovering injuries and may not bounce back in a week. So, as much as I would love to see #15 trot onto the field, I think we should err on the side of caution and start the 12 year veteran coach Matt Moore, who proved himself more then up to the task against the Broncos.

Regardless of which quarterback takes the snaps, I hate to say this, but I predict a Chiefs loss. Even if Mahomes starts, he will be extremely limited and I am not sure he will be able to make his typical “did you see that?” types of plays.

I believe Matt Moore is a good quarterback, but I don’t know if a week is enough time to prepare to face Aaron Rodgers and the Packers.

Packers 34, Chiefs 23.

Your predictions? Sound off in the comments!

BQB Red Thursday Preview: Chiefs @ Broncos

Who: Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos

When: Thursday, October 17, 2019, at 7:20 PM.

Where: Empower Field at Mile High Stadium

It’s Donkey Week, baby!

Andy Reid is 22-3 in the division. All 3 of those losses come on Thursday night football, but your BQB predicts that that streak will end tonight.

To be totally frank, I am not a fan of Thursday night football. I believe that football is an extremely physical sport, and playing a game on Sunday, then another a mere 96 hours later, gives a team very little turn around and time to rest, let alone a banged up team like the Chiefs, but in the wise words of Mitch Holthus, “The NFL waits for no one.” And neither does your BQB.

Chiefs:

Alright, let’s just say what we’ve all been thinking. We are banged up - most notably on the offensive line. This is a problem when it comes to keeping our QB upright and mobile. We have key injuries on both sides of the ball, but thankfully we have regained the Cheetah last week. He made his presence known almost immediately, so you can count on him prowling the mountain tops of Denver. I don’t care what people say about the Broncos. I know their record. I know they haven’t looked great this season. But I am here to tell you, this is divisional football. We are playing the Broncos on their home turf and you can count on them playing the Chiefs hard. If this game is to be won, it will be won in the trenches, by setting up a good running game.

I’m not sure if it’s Reid’s lack of trust for his patched together offensive line, but the running game has been almost nonexistent the last couple of weeks and we need to get those guys going. I know everyone wants to see Mahomes launch some missiles (I do too), but the best way to set up that passing game, is to ground pound the rock and punch the Donkey defense in the mouth. Then while they’re reeling, the Chiefs can throw it over their collective Donkey heads. I want to see McCoy get involved (and hug that ball to his chest like a new born) and see the dangerous duo of Damian and Darrel Williams. And once that threat has been established, Mahomes, Kelce and Hill can have some fun in the passing game. But let’s hope the Chiefs don’t sleep on Broncos’ defensive end Von Miller or he will give them a rude awakening.

Broncos:

OK, Chiefs defense is… um… shall we say… questionable - to put it mildly. But they will have to figure it out tonight, for the Donkeys like to play old school football. Let’s face it, Flacco is in his twilight years and not what he used to be as far as passing. You can look for him to be handing the ball off a lot to his two running backs, Philip Lindsay and Royce Freemen.

Last week, Carlos Hyde rushed for 117 yards against the Chiefs defense, and let’s be honest, Hyde is an above average (at best) running back, but he is no world beater. If the Chiefs can’t find a way to clog up the run and corral Lindsay and Freeman, it will be another long night. Not to mention if Flacco is able to get his running game going, this is almost a triple edged sword (if there is such a thing) for the Chiefs given that they have been gashed this season for 5.2 yards per carry on average. It wins the battle of possession time and keeps Mahomes on the bench and it opens up the passing game to wide outs like Emmanuel Sanders.

BQB Final Prediction:

Regardless of how the Broncos might look so far this season, be ready for them to come out and play with their hair on fire to hand the Chiefs another loss. But if the Chiefs’ D can hold the run at least a little  and make an aging Flacco uncomfortable, then I believe that Mahomes and the boys should be able to make enough offensive sparks fly to sneak out with a win.

If the Chiefs win this game, then they have 10 days before their next game to regroup, rest and get healthy.

I predict the Chiefs squeak out a win in a tough physical football game, and leave Denver with a final score of 24-21.

Sound off in the comments with your predictions.

Red Friday Preview: Chiefs vs. Texans

Who: Houston Texans @ Kansas City Chiefs

When: Sunday, October 13, 2019

Where: Arrowhead Stadium

Betting line: Chiefs by 4

Last Sunday night I sat in my man cave, dealing with a bout of mild depression just after listening to the Chiefs’ first loss against the Colts. Let’ face it, losing in the fashion we did, at home, on Sunday night football, all that - as my father texted me - “is the worst part of being a sports fan”. But the other part of being a true sports fan, is not being a fair weather fan. We stick by our teams and our Chiefs no matter what and cheer them on as they head into their next game against the Texans.

Chiefs:

There is no denying that the Chiefs’ offense in the last two weeks has not been up to par. Our two best receivers are out with injuries. The offensive line protecting Mahomes is absolutely paramount in this game. Many want to hold the Chiefs defense responsible for the issues the team has faced this season. While that is partly true, it is hard for our magician of a QB to make magical passes if he is on his back. The O-line absolutely MUST protect Patrick Mahomes to give him a chance to do what he does best. Give him time to get those passes out to receivers who have time to run their routes. Andfor crying out loud, keep him off his back. As long as Mahomes is upright, even without Hill and Watkins, he can still get the passing game going with Demarcus Robinson, Mekole Hardman and Byron Pringle. This mixes in more than a little of a running game with Shady McCoy along with Damien Williams and Darrell Williams.

As for the Chiefs D, I know my readers are already tired of hearing this, but in a defense where everyone is concerned about a lack of truly great playmakers in the secondary, the atrociously run defense has proved to be an even bigger problem. At the beginning of this season, the Chiefs cut running back Carlos Hyde, before he ever played a regular season game down for the Chiefs. Now Hyde wears a Texans jersey is looking to make the Chiefs sorry that they didn’t keep him. The secondary will be tested as well, with Texans wide out Will Fuller coming off a monstrous game last week against the Falcons. The Chiefs best hope defensively is to find a way to bust through what has been called one of the worst offensive lines in football right now and make Texans QB Deshawn Watson very uncomfortable by invading his personal space.

Texans:

This will mark the first ever match-up between the 10^th overall pick (Patrick Mahomes) and the 11^th overall pick (Deshawn Watson). Watson has one of the best receivers in the league in Fuller at his disposal. Last week Fuller had 14 catches for 217 yards and 3 TD receptions. Be looking for him to have a similar week against a Chiefs secondary whose best player is the Honey Badger, but will the Texans offensive line be able to keep Watson upright long enough to make those passes? They were last week.

As far as the Texans’ defensive battle goes in keeping Mahomes and the boys in check, they will start in the trenches with Texans’ defensive ends Whitney Merciless and J. J. Watt. These two have been known to wreak havoc in an opponent’s backfield. Watt alone responsible for 4 sacks and 13 QB hits this season. Our QB took 4 sacks and 8 hits just last week. Behind the stout defensive front, the Texans will most likely follow the blue print that has seemed to neutralize the high flying Chiefs offense these last two weeks with man coverage. The only player who can consistently beat man coverage on the Chiefs roster is Tyreek Hill, who is still out on injury. Asking a corner or safety to cover Hill, is like asking Donkey Kong to cover Sonic the Hedgehog. But Mahomes’ other targets have yet to prove that they can beat man coverage, so count on teams using it until they do.

BQB prediction:

My prediction truly depends on which Texans team decides to show up to Arrowhead: The Texans that hung 55 on the Falcons last week or the Texans that only scored 10 points in a loss to the Panthers the week before.

Unfortunately, the Chiefs are very banged up with their two best receivers and one of their best defensive linemen out with injuries. The offensive line is still patch-worked together. Regardless pf his competitive nature, it is fair to assume that Mahomes is still somewhat limited by his ankle.

It pains me to do so, but I predict the Chiefs falling to the Texans 24-28. I deeply hope and pray that I am wrong.