The Chiefs have long been known as an offensive juggernaut due to the Andy Reid/Patrick Mahomes collaboration and have often been among the league leaders in points per game scored. Last season, though, they were 15th in points scored per game. There are many reasons for this, as defenses have tried to limit the deep, explosive plays, the Chiefs have been more willing to run as a result and the play of their defense.
Steve Spagnuolo has been with the Chiefs since 2019, and he’s been instrumental in Kansas City winning three Super Bowls since his arrival. In Week 2, he showed once again why he is one of the best defensive coordinators in the game.
While Joe Burrow ($6,300; 18.22 FPTS) completed 23-of-35 for 258 yards and two touchdowns for a passer rating of 103.7, he was pressured on 24.4% of his drop backs and sacked three times. The most pivotal one occurring at the start of the fourth quarter when he lost the ball and it was returned for a touchdown to put the Chiefs up by a point.
Spagnuolo played man coverage 41.5% of the time, had a 33.6% press coverage rate and the defensive backs allowed only 3.0 yards of separation, compared to 5.1 for Cincinnati.
The Bengals rushing game was limited to 3.4 yards per carry and 13.6% were stuffed. Per Next Gen Stats, they rushed for three yards below expectations.
Ja’Marr Chase ($7,800; 7.5 FPTS) was limited to four catches for 35 yards on five targets. Andrei Iosivas ($3,800; 14.7 FPTS) caught two of four targets for seven yards and two touchdowns.
Mike Gesicki ($3,100; 16.1 FPTS) was the leading receiver for the Bengals with seven receptions for 91 yards.
Patrick Mahomes ($7,000; 14.94 FPTS) wasn’t great, going 18-of-25 for 151 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Isiah Pacheco ($6,900; 16.1 FPTS) rushed 19 times for 90 yards and had five receptions for 21 yards. Rashee Rice ($6,700; 18.5 FPTS) led the way with five receptions for 75 yards and a touchdown.
Per Next Gen Stats, Rice clocked a max speed of 19.13 mph and the throw had a 40% chance of being completed. There was only 2.2 yards of separation when the ball arrived.
The Chiefs earned the 26-25 win after Harrison Butker drilled a 51-yard field goal with three seconds left.
In the $3.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire tournament, Rice was rostered on 16.3% of teams. Iosivas was on 7.8%. Chase was on 5.8% of teams.
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