Trent McDuffie’s Strong Statement to Chiefs Locker Room Before Jaguars Game
The Chiefs finally seem to have found their rhythm after that rocky 0–2 start. Back-to-back gritty wins over the Giants and Ravens have them back above water, but there’s still one part of this defense that hasn’t quite clicked: the pass rush. Through four weeks, Kansas City’s managed just eight sacks. And Trent McDuffie has a message for the new DBs.
The cornerback’s words sounded like a mission statement for the Chiefs’ defensive identity for the rest of the season. “You can’t just play man-to-man, you can’t just play zone… you’ve got to do everything that it means to be a football player
Basically, don’t walk into Arrowhead with a one-trick resume. In Spags’ defense, the corners are more like chess pieces than simple defensive units. One snap, you’re mirroring an outside wideout, the next, you’re setting the edge on a run play, and a few downs later, you’re timing up a blitz through the B-gap.
That’s the whole DNA of Kansas City’s scheme: chaos, disguise, and perfectly timed pressure. Last season, the Chiefs blitzed at the fifth-highest rate in the league. They ended up sending five or more rushers on 35.6% of dropbacks. And those weren’t empty blitzes either. They generated pressure 43.8% of the time, one of the best rates in the NFL.
McDuffie knows how it works and how it leads to wins. Just look back at the AFC title game last year. Spagnuolo dialed up a corner blitz from the weak side: Trent McDuffie shot through the B-gap, flushed Josh Allen out of the pocket, and forced an off-balance throw that ended up changing the game.
That’s the kind of organized chaos Spags lives for. And that’s exactly what McDuffie wants the new DBs to buy into.
And no better team to test that against a Jaguars team with a duct-taped OL.
Jaguars’ OL issues ahead of the Chiefs game
The Chiefs are rolling into Jacksonville nearly at full strength. That’s a big relief for a team that’s been through its share of early-season bruises. The only real concern is CB Kristian Fulton (ankle), who was limited again in practice. But everyone else?
Eight of nine players on the injury report were full participants this week. That’s as close to a clean bill of health as you’ll ever get in the NFL.
The Jaguars, on the other hand, are holding their offensive line together with tape and hope. Five linemen were limited on Thursday, five! That includes three starters: Ezra Cleveland (concussion/ankle), Patrick Mekari (knee), and Anton Harrison (elbow).
To make matters worse, backups Wyatt Milum and Chuma Edoga are also dealing with injuries. Ezra and Patrick managed to play last week, but facing a fresh and strong Chiefs defense this time might be much tougher.
And this brings us back to Trent McDuffie’s point. This is the week to get creative, get aggressive, and unleash the blitz. With Jacksonville’s protection unit in shambles, Trevor Lawrence might be seeing red jerseys all afternoon. Don’t be surprised if the Chiefs walk away with three or more sacks.
Steelers Legend Slams Mike Tomlin's Direction
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers are off to a 2-1 start.
That being said, their play has been shaky at best and it has led to a lot of questions, and quite few answers. One person who has been a regular critic of the team in recent years continued his criticism, as former Steelers Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Terry Bradshaw took to Yahoo Sports to issue criticism on the current iteration of the team.
“They’re never going to fire Mike Tomlin. They’ve made the playoffs (a lot in his) 18 years, if he wins it, he’ll go again 19 years,” Bradshaw said. “They don’t have the team. It takes offense, defense, takes it all, takes coaching. Every time they get great players and they do really well … you had Antonio Brown, the running back that signed with the Jets … all these guys are on their way to the Hall of Fame playing so great for Pittsburgh, but ‘I want my money’. They don’t get their money and they’re out of there. That’s why I wasn’t opposed to Dallas’ move (with Micah Parsons)."
The Steelers are now trying to find a balance as they have been quite uncompetitive in the playoffs in recent years despite strong regular seasons. With no losing seasons under his belt, head coach Mike Tomlin's lack of playoff success in nearly a decade brings a confusing twist into how he is viewed as a coach.
The Steelers, despite getting off to a winning start so far this season, do not look to be particularly strong Super Bowl contenders, so Bradshaw is showing caution to what has transpired thus far this year.
Bradshaw is no stranger to criticism of the Steelers and their players. Over the summer, Bradshaw was a vocal critic of the move to sign Aaron Rodgers, a comment he recently discussed following the first game of the season.
With much of the season left to play, it will be interesting to see if the Steelers can perform well enough to put them into a good position for the playoffs. Then the question of whether they are capable of winning in the playoffs will come into play once again.
