KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -Based on the supposedly sacred takeaway/giveaway margin so many coaches swear by, Herm Edwards and his youthful Kansas City Chiefs should be trampling everyone in their path.
The Chiefs’ turnover margin is a sparkling plus-seven – third-best in the NFL – but their 1-7 record leaves them at the bottom of the league along with Cincinnati (1-8) and the winless Detroit Lions.
The past two weeks, against the New York Jets and Tampa Bay, Kansas City took the ball away seven times and coughed it up only once. Yet, the Chiefs lost both games, giving up fourth-quarter leads in each game.
“I’ve only been in the NFL three years, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a team that was plus-seven and 1-7 at the same time,” said safety Jarrad Page. “But there’s a lot of weird things.”
polis, unbeaten Tennessee and the NFC East-leading New York Giants.
The Colts, Titans and Giants are a combined 19-5.
So why are the Chiefs only 1-7?
“There’s a lot of weird things going on,” repeated Page.
One explanation might be Kansas City’s league-low four sacks. Only one sack has come from a starting defensive lineman. One and a half sacks belong to linebacker Derrick Johnson. He hurt his hamstring in the Tampa Bay game on Sunday and may not be ready for this week’s trip to San Diego, where Chargers QB Philip Rivers is averaging 246 yards passing, seventh in the NFL.
Compared with other teams, Kansas City’s paltry sack total is enough to make a fan wince. The 1-8 Bengals, with nine sacks, are the only other NFL team that hasn’t cracked double digits.
The Pittsburgh Steelers lead with 32 sacks, and even the forlorn Lions have 16. In other words, the worst team in the league is four times better than Kansas City at getting after the quarterback.
“That’s awful,” Edwards said. “I’ve never been involved in that. That’s almost like we only rush the quarterback with two guys.”
Against the Jets two weeks ago, the Chiefs managed some pressure on Brett Favre. One of Favre’s three interceptions was caused by defensive end Tamba Hali bearing down on him.
ot him down enough. That’s always hard. That’s why on third down we haven’t been able to get off the field. When you can’t get the quarterback down, especially on third down, you’ve got a problem.”
The Chiefs were hopeful Tuesday of good news on the injury front. They expect punter Dustin Colquitt to be back after missing two games. Also, cornerback Brandon Flowers is planning to practice Wednesday and could be healed from his hamstring problem.
But placing Kolby Smith on injured reserve with a knee injury this week leaves them perilously thin at running back with Larry Johnson serving a one-game league suspension.
Johnson, who also missed the last three games for breaking team rules, will be eligible to return Nov. 16 against New Orleans. Edwards said he would immediately go into the mix.
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