NFL.com: Chiefs running game is now a strength

[Hammock Parties]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap300...-each-afc-team

2) Kansas City Chiefs
Win AFC: 26.3 percent
Win Super Bowl: 16.4 percent

Strength: Run game.

The Chiefs had the highest third-down conversion percentage in the NFL between Weeks 11-17 (51.4 percent), and during that period, they rushed on 44.8 percent of plays, up from Weeks 1-9, when they kept it on the ground for only 35.1 percent of plays. Digging deeper, it was not long runs but rather strategic carries that drove their efficiency, as 73 percent of third-down runs resulted in a first down (the most in the NFL), a figure that was nearly 10 percent better than the next closest team (the Lions, at 63.3 percent). Patrick Mahomes and the passing attack are fierce, but the ability to pick up first downs on the ground can get the offense through tight spots and keep defenses on their toes.

Area of concern: Defensive reliability.

In Weeks 11-17, the Chiefs were extremely efficient at defending against passes of 10-plus air yards, holding opposing passers to a 22.6 passer rating (lowest) and 5.9 yards per attempt (lowest by 2 yards), with two touchdowns to eight interceptions (best -- all stats per NGS). This helped drive the league's best scoring defense (allowing 11.5 points per game) in the last seven weeks of the season. I bring this up here because rookie safety Juan Thornhill was just lost for the rest of the season with a torn ACL, and his absence at a crucial position could be a source of inefficiency. Furthermore, the Chiefs exhibited a concerning lack of consistency against the run. In Weeks 1-10, Kansas City allowed 5.14 yards per rush (third most) and 3.8 rushes of 10-plus yards per game (in Weeks 11-17, this figure decreased to 3.0 per game). They also allowed 12 rushing touchdowns in the beginning of the season (1.2 per game) and only two -- total -- in Weeks 11-17.

[Megatron96]

Hats off to Damien finally getting his game going again. Maybe he really is a late-season RB. Seems like his production improved significantly at the end of last year as well. Or maybe it's just that our OL was finally getting healthy after week 13. Either way, the running game has been performing better in the last quarter, which hopefully gives us some momentum going into the post-season.