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Chiefs Rumors: Chargers credit Travis Kelce for dominating defense
The Kansas City Chiefs continued their recent dominance over the rival Los Angeles Chargers in Week 8, picking up a 31-17 win at Arrowhead Stadium. To no one's surprise, tight end Travis Kelce -- with Taylor Swift in attendance, of course -- was dominant, hauling in 12 receptions for 179 yards and a touchdown in the win.
Rather than downplaying Kelce's impact or anything of that sort, though, Chargers players are giving credit to the Chiefs tight end for picking the defense apart when they played zone.
While LA head coach Brandon Staley told Daniel Popper of The Athletic (subscription required) that the Chargers played "plenty of man" during the first 30 minutes and more in the second half, some of the defensive backs disagreed with that, while crediting Kelce for taking advantage.
“We played zone,” Davis said. “(Kelce) just goes to the spot and turns around. It has nothing to do with Travis. It’s us. We got to get on their ass. When you come down and you play the Chiefs, you got to come out and play man and get on their ass.”
Derwin James also added that the Chargers played "too much zone" and said Kelce was getting behind the linebackers in space at will in the first half.
So while it does seem that there might be a bit of turmoil with the LA defense, they are certainly still giving Kelce his due. It's one thing to know the space is there in a zone defense, it's another thing entirely for a player to find that space again and again while slowly picking apart that defense. That's what Kelce accomplished.