Kansas City Chiefs: 3 Vital statistics for 2019 season

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JANUARY 20: Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs celebrates with Travis Kelce #87 after scoring a touchdown in the third quarter against the New England Patriots during the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 20, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

3 of 4

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – JANUARY 20: Chris Jones #95 of the Kansas City Chiefs gestures in the first half against the New England Patriots during the AFC Championship Game at Arrowhead Stadium on January 20, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

52

Talk about an overhaul? This past season, the Kansas City Chiefs were tied for the league lead with 52 sacks. It was a club that also forced 27 turnovers. And despite those respectable numbers in both categories, the club still finished next to last in the league in both total defense and yards allowed through the air. And the team wasn’t much better when it came to the run, ranking 27th in this category as well.

So it was goodbye to veteran defensive coordinator Bob Sutton and hello to well-traveled Steve Spagnuolo. It’s safe to say that he and current Chiefs’ head coach Andy Reid go back a few years. The one-time sideline leader of the Los Angeles Rams has made his mark around the league as a defensive coordinator both in a positive and negative way.

Hence, Kansas City is making the switch to the 4-3 defense this year and have spent this offseason refurbishing that unit mainly via trades and free agency. Meanwhile, performers such as Justin Houston, Eric Berry, Dee Ford, Steven Nelson and Allen Bailey (to name a few) are no longer with the club via various circumstances.

So, enter the likes of defensive ends Frank Clark, Alex Okafor and Emmanuel Ogbah, linebackers Darron Lee and Damien Wilson, cornerback Bashaud Breeland and safety Tyrann Mathieu.

It’s going to be interesting to see how fast this group, spearheaded by unsung defensive tackle Chris Jones, comes together and what kind of football the defense is playing down the stretch.

Home/Kansas City Chiefs