Steve Spagnuolo's Ideal KC Chiefs Defense Is Here
When defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo joined the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2019 offseason, the team was coming off a disappointing loss in the AFC Championship Game mainly due to the defense. Improvement was inevitable because of the change of leadership and the influx of talent general manager Brett Veach brought in.
While the defense enjoyed success over the early portion of Spagnuolo’s Kansas City tenure, it was never considered a strength for the team. However, over the last 33 games (and especially this season), Kansas City’s defense has become a force to be reckoned with.
The reason 33 games is the timeframe is because that’s how many games, including playoffs, the Chiefs have played since Trent McDuffie returned from injury last season. In those 33 games, Kansas City has allowed 18.4 points per game, which would rank as a top-five scoring defense this year. That’s a sample size of nearly two full seasons in which the defense has performed as one of the best in the league. Defense is usually less predictive than offense year to year because of the various factors that affect it. However, since Spagnuolo has gotten a defense entirely built in his image, he’s turned it into one of the best units, regardless of phase, in the entire NFL.
Spagnuolo made a name for himself when he slowed down the undefeated New England Patriots in the Super Bowl with the New York Giants. He did this by getting home with a four-man pass rush, but it wasn't just your traditional two edge players and two defensive tackles. He’d get his four best pass rushers on the field simultaneously to cause the opposing offense havoc.
While that seems like a familiar concept today, the unique versatility those defensive fronts had for its time allowed Spagnuolo to use that to his advantage. It’s why guys like George Karlaftis, Mike Danna, Charles Omenihu and Chris Jones make a ton of sense for him. He can create different looks by moving them all over the defensive front and creating advantages for his unit.
It’s not just up front where Spagnuolo likes to change up the looks. It’s also in the back end of the defense. On Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, the Chiefs ran an inverted Cover 2 look where L’Jarius Sneed played one of the safety spots. The previous week, Kansas City ran a Cover 2 look where Drue Tranquill played as one of the half-field safeties. Sneed is a cornerback and Tranquill is a linebacker. They can do that because they are excellent players and have the versatility to do multiple things in coverage, allowing Spagnuolo to disguise looks and throw off the opposing offense on a down-to-down basis.
For the early portion of his time in Kansas City, Spagnuolo had to maximize his players with scheme, but now the players can maximize his schemes. Having All-Pro caliber players like Sneed, McDuffie and Jones helps expand possibilities. In the past, when the Chiefs blitzed, it would either result in a big play for them or the opposing offense. However, they have been able to limit the explosives for the opposing offense because of the elite coverage their corners give them. They can put more pressure on opposing quarterbacks and throw off the timing of offenses more frequently.
During the last two offseason, Veach has done a fantastic job getting Spagnuolo players to make the most of his abilities as a defensive coordinator. Adding Karlaftis and McDuffie in the first round is a huge boost, but finding later-round contributors like Chamarri Conner, Jaylen Watson and Leo Chenal has helped take Kansas City’s defense to new heights.
When those players are brought in, there is a clear vision for their use. Conner has been playing more frequently as a do-it-all safety. Chenal has a specific role as a run-stopper and pass rusher. Those niche roles may never get the shine that the starters do, but they help elevate Spagnuolo’s defense.
It is no secret that this year’s Chiefs’ defense is the best of Spagnuolo’s in Kansas City. That has to do with a blend of him being an excellent coordinator and having the ideal talent fits to allow him to unleash seemingly endless possibilities on the field.
