Chiefs' Answer for Improvement in Red Zone is Simpler Than You Think

The Kansas City Chiefs' offense fared better in the red zone in Sunday's win over the 49ers, and both Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes had a simple answer for why.

Feb 11, 2024; Paradise, Nevada, USA; Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid with quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) against the San Francisco 49ers during Super Bowl LVIII at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Despite numerous injuries and some inconsistent quarterback play, the Kansas City Chiefs' offense has generally held its own this season and remains a solid unit. Whether it be running the football, executing on third downs or moving the chains in general, Andy Reid and Matt Nagy's unit is succeeding more than most of the NFL.

One area, however, has lagged behind the rest of the sport. Coming into Week 7's play, Kansas City ranked 29th in red zone touchdown percentage at 38.9. That seemed to be a point of emphasis coming into the bye week, and the results of whatever self-scouting process Reid and company did during that time off are positive right now.

The Chiefs delivered a much more inspiring red zone performance in Sunday's win over the San Francisco 49ers. When asked why that was the case, Reid responded with a simple answer: Kansas City stayed out of its own way.

"No, we did it," Reid said. "The place we did well was on no penalties. That ends up being important when you get down there and you don't take anything away from yourself. That's kind of hurt us in the last few games. But it was a great scheme. It was schemes that we used in there. The guys executed well in there, so all around it was good."

With four scores on five red zone trips in Week 7, the Chiefs upped their percentage of touchdowns to 47.8 and their ranking to 25th in football. With a good game or two over the next few weeks, gunning for a spot outside the bottom 10 seems well within reach (the 21st and 22nd teams are tied at 52.4%). Weeks 8 and 9 against the Las Vegas Raiders and Tampa Bay Buccaneers might differ, though, considering those defenses hold respective ranks of 21st and 10th in red zone efficiency surrendered.

Even more impressive is how the Chiefs found success in the red zone. They didn't have a single passing touchdown on the afternoon, so it was generally the same commitment to the run that got them into the end zone. Including plays that featured penalties, here's how each scoring sequence unfolded:

• 1: Run, pass, pass, run, run, run
• 2: Run, run, pass, run
• 3: Run, run, pass, run
• 4: Run

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes, as he has all season, tipped his cap to the rushing attack for stepping up.

"I think execution," Mahomes said. "Obviously, we were able to run the football. That was big. That's a really good defensive line and the O-line stepped up and we were able to run it down there. We found a way to get in the end zone and when you get in the end zone, you get points on the board. Now it's about cleaning up the turnovers and [I] think if we could do that, we can start hitting our stride."

With running back Kareem Hunt back to being a human battering ram and wideouts Mecole Hardman and Xavier Worthy getting unleashed as horizontal speed threats, Kansas City suddenly looked effective in the last 20 yards again. Time will tell whether this holds up but for one game, touchdowns were somewhat pain-free once Mahomes led the offense to scoring position.

Sometimes, less is more. That appeared to be the key in Week 7.

Read More: Four Takeaways from the Chiefs' 28-18 Win Over the 49ers