Someone needed to step up.
The Oakland Raiders had marched the ball down the field on their first possession against the visiting Kansas City Chiefs and were threatening to score. Facing a 3rd-and-1 on the Chiefs’ 10-yard-line, a conversion and subsequent touchdown looked inevitable, as the Chiefs’ defense looked about to continue its struggles from Week 1.
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But defense in the NFL is a strange animal. Often it comes down to scheme and simple execution, where the Xs and Os dictate the result of a given play. Sometimes even if a defense executes its game plan, it gets beat by a superior offense (see Patrick Mahomes and Co.). But occasionally, what really needs to happen is an individual needs to step up and make a play on his own by defeating the guy in front of him. The Chiefs needed someone to do that Sunday, and defensive lineman Chris Jones answered the call.
Jones is one of the best combinations of strength and explosion among NFL defensive linemen, and he shows the latter here. Oakland is attempting to have the left guard pull to the right side in order to gain push in a short-yardage situation. This means that the left tackle needs to reach Jones by moving horizontally quickly and walling him off. The problem is Jones gets such a good jump at the snap that the tackle has no chance. Jones keeps his eyes up, locates where the ball is and brings down Oakland running back Josh Jacobs for no gain. The Raiders are forced to settle for three points.
This type of individual plays are what set the best defensive players apart. Had Jones not made this stop, the Raiders likely would have scored a touchdown. While Mahomes’ blitzkrieg in the second quarter still might have rendered that moot, Jones helped keep the Raiders from ultimately going up 14-0 during a miserable first quarter in which everything was going wrong for the Chiefs.
Jones filled out the box score Sunday with a sack, a tackle for loss, a pass defended and three hits on Raiders quarterback Derek Carr. He was the best defender on Kansas City’s defense by a wide margin, and was a major factor in the Chiefs holding Oakland scoreless the final three quarters of the game.
Jones was one of the leaders behind a defense that turned the corner in the second quarter, starting with a failed 3rd-and-11 conversion for Oakland on their first drive of the 15-minute frame.
Context is important when considering this play. The Chiefs had scored to bring the game within a field goal, but the Raiders had scored on two of their first three possessions to start the game. They had converted multiple third downs along the way, and the Chiefs needed a stop to keep the momentum swinging their way. Jones, along with defensive end Frank Clark, prevented Carr from going through his reads by getting quick pressure. This forced Carr to rely on his legs to gain the first down, which nearly succeeded but fell just short.
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Some of the biggest plays defenders can make don’t show up in the box score, and keeping a quarterback from having the time to look for receivers is one of them. The Raiders were forced to punt, and the Chiefs took the lead on their next possession.
Jones played a key role in helping Mahomes pile on later in the second quarter by collecting a first-down sack on the first snap of an Oakland possession following yet another Chiefs touchdown.
Jones has honed his technique since coming into the league and no longer relies on his physical skills alone. On this play, he sets up the right guard with a quick fake to the inside, causing the guard to stop his feet and attempt a punch. Jones anticipates this and swipes the O-lineman’s hands out of the way, further ruining the guard’s balance. He then accelerates outside and is on Carr before the play can develop. This sack set the Raiders back to 2nd-and-16 and they never recovered, punting a few plays later.
Of course, Mahomes stole the show by throwing for 3,920 yards and 98 touchdowns (all numbers approximate) in the second quarter, so it’s easy to overlook the role the defense played in that run. By forcing quick punts on three straight possessions, Jones and Co. kept getting the ball back to the offense and also kept the momentum from swinging back to Oakland. While they weren’t as impressive, they were nearly as crucial in the run that sealed the game.
The Chiefs’ defense kept up its solid play throughout the rest of the game. In the third and fourth quarter, while the Chiefs were able to keep moving the ball but couldn’t score, the defense held up its end of the bargain by repeatedly stopping the Raiders. Jones played a major role in that despite not collecting many stats. He was winning quickly and consistently on passing downs and regularly forced Carr to abandon his reads and either scramble or make a hurried throw.
The value of repeated pressures goes beyond the individual play. The Raiders were trying to catch up from a three-score deficit, yet they often couldn’t dial up routes that took time to develop because they had to anticipate Jones breaking through every snap. Being able to limit an opponent’s play-calling options is one of the goals of a defense, and Jones was able to do that throughout the second half.
Even with the Raiders attempting to account for Jones and Carr getting rid of the ball quickly, he still found a way to make an impact on plays.
I slowed down this play to emphasis how quickly Jones gets his hands on the blocker. He’s able to immediately get inside his opponent’s pads and simply toss him aside. His unusual strength allows such a quick win that he’s able to knock the ball harmlessly to the ground and nearly intercept it.
Another impact play Jones made in the second half that could go unnoticed was his contribution to Tanoh Kpassagnon’s third-down sack that effectively shut down the Raiders’ last attempt at a comeback.
Jones gets great initial push and drives the guard backward several yards. Carr visibly reacts, dropping his eyes for a moment and hopping backward. The guard is able to reset and slow Jones, so the D-lineman squares up and gets ready to lift his hands to try and deflect a throw. This extra moment of Carr dropping his eyes, combined with good coverage down the field, gives Kpassagnon time to win with a spin move and bring Carr to the ground. Jones’ contribution to the play is small, but important. Had Carr not lost a split-second reacting to potential pressure from Jones, he may have handled Kpassagnon’s rush better or found a receiver.
Jones is in a contract year with the Chiefs, and both sides have repeatedly stated they want to get a deal done. His performance vs. the Raiders is simply the latest example of how important Jones is for the Chiefs — and why he’s worth the big bucks. He’s the type of defender who can end drives on his own and dominate games at the line of scrimmage, even against high-level opponents. His impact goes beyond the box score and forces opponents to change their plan of attack. If the Chiefs’ defensive resurgence against the Raiders is the start of a pattern, it’s a good bet Jones will be at the center of it.
(Top photo: D. Ross Cameron/Getty Images)