Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Diego Chargers Ten In-Depth Observations

Dec 28, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back De’Anthony Thomas (13) runs the ball during the first half against the San Diego Chargers at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

7. My favorite play from the Chiefs yesterday was the 30-yard pass to DAT, and it’s for more reasons than simply the fact that it was their only successful deep pass. Thomas has exceeded my expectations as a rookie, because that reception shows that he’s further along as a receiver by the end of his rookie year than some of us would have thought. The adjustment he made to dip under tight coverage from the corner was excellent, and it shows top-notch ball skills and surprisingly great awareness. He made plenty of defenders miss as a punt returner and had a successful 18-yard run, but his best play of the game was his 30-yard reception as a receiver.

Albert Wilson, on the other hand, didn’t have the best of days, and there was some mis-communication between him and Daniel that seemed to be on Wilson, including one play in which it looked like he was blocking instead of running a route. He had a rather ghastly drop early in the game, and it was a clear concentration drop as he simply took his eyes off the ball in order to gauge the defense in front of him.

Wilson’s drop, though, has something to do with the gameplan, because the Chiefs asked an awful lot from their pass-catchers after the catch. Most of the routes they ran were short ones that required them to make something happen after the catch, especially since the Chiefs called many conservative passing plays on third-and-long. It put pressure on the likes of Wilson to try and make something happen, so that’s one explanation for the drop.

8. Travis Kelce didn’t have any problems when it came to making things happen on the field, and he finishes his first actual season in the league with 67 receptions for 862 yards, five touchdowns, and an average of about 13 yards per reception. The Chiefs best pass-catcher , Kelce had seven receptions for 84 yards, leading the team in yards, receptions, and yards per reception yesterday. He had no trouble making defenders miss after the catch, and he had a particularly sick cut over the middle of the field at one point.

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