Kansas City Chiefs Still Have Plenty of Room to Improve After Week 2 Win

Now back on even ground record-wise, Kansas City can look to clean things up and keep momentum going in the coming weeks.

Coming off a very disappointing Week 1 loss to the Detroit Lions, the Kansas City Chiefs were in desperate need of a bounce-back performance against the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 2. 

While their Sunday matchup certainly didn't showcase a team that's fixed, per se, it did showcase one that is on the road to recovery after stumbling out of the gate.

Sep 17, 2023; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) reacts after beating the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

First and foremost, it's unbelievable what a team can accomplish when it gets two of its three best players back in the fold. Tight end Travis Kelce scored a touchdown in his 2023 season debut and took some attention away from a Chiefs wideout group that struggled immensely in the season opener. On the other side of the ball, defensive tackle Chris Jones notched 1.5 sacks while playing right around half of the available snaps. Both players were key elements of the win, with Kelce in particular having plenty of room to improve on his Week 2 stat line.

Thinking big picture, Steve Spagnuolo's defense has been nothing short of stellar in the first two games of the season. As a result, that collective is naturally playing a lot closer to its fullest potential than its offensive counterparts. Surrendering 14 and nine points to two of the NFL's more potent offenses is no easy feat, especially considering that Jones isn't at full strength yet and Charles Omenihu is suspended through Week 6. Kansas City is doing this with players at every level of the defense (rookie Felix Anudike-Uzomah up front, veteran free agent signing Drue Tranquill at linebacker and second-year man Bryan Cook at safety) still adjusting to new roles. 

Offensively, there is a ton of runway for continued growth and progress. Andy Reid's attack is consistently one of the very best in the sport yet, two weeks into the year, it's been difficult to watch for the most part. On Sunday, the Chiefs converted on just four of 13 third-down attempts and punted four times. They averaged 4.6 yards per rush, but only two (yes, two) of those tries in the first half were intentional pre-snap. A lot of responsibility was placed on quarterback Patrick Mahomes to perform, and he struggled at different points in the game. 

The biggest areas where the Chiefs can — and need — to clean things up pertain to penalties and ball security. Kansas City was very undisciplined in Week 2, committing 12 infractions and costing the team 94 yards in the process. Additionally, Mahomes threw an ugly first-half interception and very well could have been picked off once or twice more. The Chiefs fumbled four times and lost two of those. It was one of the sloppiest performances of the Reid-Mahomes era to date.

That's where everyone should have some quiet confidence, though. Despite all of the mistakes, poor execution and seemingly bad play so far, the Chiefs have lost by one point (without their best defender and second-best offensive player) to a potential playoff opponent and flat-out silenced a 2022-23 playoff opponent in their own home. If the ceiling of this year's Kansas City team is being capable of hanging in close games with other clubs that have high hopes, folks would be disappointed. That's how high the bar has been set, although that 100th-percentile outcome could still lead to postseason success.

Kelce and Jones returned, wide receivers Skyy Moore and Kadarius Toney bounced back with respectable showings, running back Isiah Pacheco had a tremendous second half and Spagnuolo's defense remained excellent. There's something to build on here. The good news is that things showed signs of returning closer to normalcy in Week 2, but this isn't the 100th-percentile outcome. 

If the Chiefs find a way to maintain better drive-to-drive consistency and simply stop shooting themselves in the foot, they'll be able to then put one of those feet in front of the other and keep moving forward. With an inferior Chicago Bears squad on the docket for this weekend, the arrow should continue to point upward. 

Read More: Chris Jones Returns With ‘Special’ Performance in 2023 Debut