Titans at Chiefs final score: Tennessee dominates Kansas City, 26-10
In 2013, it took the Kansas City Chiefs up until Week 11 to lose their first game of the season. In 2014, they’ve reached that mark 10 weeks early, dropping their season opener at home to the Tennessee Titans, losing 26 to 10.
Last season, the Chiefs offense live and died with Jamaal Charles, and unfortunately, that tradition carried over into the new season. From the opening snap, the Chiefs force fed Charles–and other running backs–to generate offense, but as the game wore on, the Titans defense put a stop to anything the Chiefs had planned, Charles related. By the final quarter, Charles rushed for 19 yards on 7 carries, his worse rushing output since December of 2012 where he rushed 10 yards on 9 carries.
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This forced the game into Alex Smith’s hand and he, as many assume he’d do in these situations, failed to put the team on his back, throwing 3 interceptions to 1 touchdown, a touchdown thrown with the game out of hand. As a whole, the Chiefs offense failed to generate movement–no Dwyane Bowe (suspended, violation of league substance abuse) didn’t help
On the opposite side of Smith’s troubles, Jake Locker, whom has faced many critiques throughout his brief NFL career, put the team on his back. Down 3-0, Locker lead the Titans to score 23 unanswered points, two scores coming through the air.
This was the Jake Locker Titans fans hoped to see on a weekly basis. He was poised, got rid of the ball fast, and was able to generate yards when the rushing game was unable to (speaking of rushing game, the lose of Chris Johnson seems minuscule). They’ll face a better all-around team next week in the Cincinnati Bengals, but if the running game can improve while Locker maintains this type of play, 2-0 isn’t out of the question.
To add insult to injury for Kansas City, the Chiefs lost Pro Bowl linebacker Derrick Johnson to an achilles injury. It can’t be stressed how important it is for the Chiefs defense to remain above average–it could be the difference between making or missing as the offense has yet to prove they can carry both facets.
Next week, the Chiefs take on Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos.