The Aftermath: Week 4 – Tampa Bay/Kansas City

Kansas City Chiefs 41, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31 (Oct. 2)

Pat Mahomes is the most electrifying quarterback in the league and his skill was on full display Sunday night at Raymond James Stadium. I will not go into the stats of Patrick Mahomes, and you want to know why? They only matter a little. To watch him properly I had the TV sound off, and I was in awe.

When talking about a pure QB, Mahomes has an MVP and a Super Bowl, yes, but either way he is superior to the QBs around his age, and most of the veteran quarterbacks. Mahomes faced a stingy defense that had been playing “lights out” football. The Bucs defense was carrying a team while waiting for the offense to catch up. I was hoping that catch-up would happen Sunday because  I felt like the Chiefs would get the better of the Bucs’ D – and I was right.

Time and time again there were first downs, then there were touchdowns – the Chiefs offense moved at will. The Bucs defense did manage to get a turnover, but it was all too late. 

The Buccaneers did not have an answer for one of the best tight ends in the league, Travis Kelce. The way Kelce reads coverages, and the connections that he and Mahomes have, is special. The Chiefs run game was serviceable and served to run the clock down throughout the game.

I understand what it’s like to have a QB that is special to go against.

In defenses when you play a “run” style QB, or a QB that can run just as well as pass, you have to be super-disciplined and stay in your rush lanes. Those lanes are the path to the QB you use when pass rushing. You can’t pass-rush too far up the field that you create hole big enough to give Mahomes an opening to run through. But you still need to apply pressure and try to sack the elusive QB, because the secondary can’t cover the receivers forever. With enough time, Mahomes will find the open man and beat you through the air. 

You’ve got to adapt as a defense. Often we’ll designate a “spy,” an extra defensive back or a fast athletic linebacker on QB like Devin White. The spy can keep an eye on Mahomes and reduce the ways he can run. The cost, though, is that your spy is taken out of pass coverage while he’s focusing on the quarterback. With Patrick Mahomes at the helm, that’s a real problem, as he reads defenses like the elite quarterback he is and having one last defender makes it that much easier for him to complete passes.  

It comes down to discipline. Stay in your lanes, rush your ass off, and keep an eye on the run while rushing the QB. 

Of course this is all good intention. It’s a great plan until Mahomes does a 360 spin, and while coming out the spin manages to torque his body to flip the ball beer-pong style for a six-yard touchdown. It was an insanely good play that has become another run-of-the-mill highlight for Mahomes. 

Stat-wise, Tom Brady did well on paper. Putting up 31 points will win most games – so we can take solace in that. But how will we handle an electric, mobile quarterback wizard in the playoffs? 

Former defensive end Stylez White played for the Houston Texans, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons, Tennessee Titans, New Orleans Saints, Washington Redskins, Chicago Bears and Orlando Predators. He was on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ defense from 2007 to 2010.