2. San Francisco 49ers (3) Record: 7-3 (win vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27-14) – Everyone wants to hate QB Brock Purdy, and they’re haters, period. He went 21-of-25 for 333 yards and three touchdowns. This game is how it should’ve gone down for him. He has RB Christian McCaffrey (21-78-0 rushing and 5-25-1-5 receiving) and WR Deebo Samuel (3-63-0-4) back. This team is as complete as it can get offensively. They were facing a Buccaneers squad that is 4-6 for a reason.
The Bucs are No. 30 against the pass and No. 6 against the rush. While they held McCaffrey under 100 yards, the West Coast offense is geared toward the short pass to offset a strong rush defense. Combine that with the 49ers’ No. 8 ranked pass offense, with backs that can catch, and this win was inevitable. The Bucs feast on lower-tier teams and lose against their bettors.
3. Kansas City Chiefs (2) Record: 7-3 (loss vs. Philadelphia Eagles 21-17) – If there is one game that epitomizes what’s happening to the Chiefs, it is this one. They have a glaring issue with their wide receiver corp. They lead the league with 26 drops; those drops cost them a win last night. They were offensively superior but couldn’t turn that into points. That fell squarely on the receivers, including TE Travis Kelce, with a critical fumble while going 7-44-1-9 receiving. The glaring issue is that he could only muster 44 yards on seven receptions. He’s looking old this season, and at 34 years old, he doesn’t have much time left.
Back to the receiver drops, there were five, and one was a potential game-winner. This loss is squarely on their shoulders, considering the passing attack is what drives this team with QB Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes went 24-of-43 for 177 passing yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. How many yards did they lose with those drops? These drops are a recurring theme with these receivers; come crunch time against elite teams, they can cost them a game. We saw it with this one and in Week One with the Detroit Lions.
People love to lie and say a loss isn’t on one player, but in certain situations, it is, and you can put this loss squarely on the shoulders of WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who can burn most anyone on the field but had butter fingers when the team needed him. Then there’s WR Kadarius Toney, who validated his reputation with three drops.
Toney’s rep is one of a player who’s not tough and isn’t dependable, and that’s why the New York Giants moved on from him. Part of his draft profile was concerned with attitude and durability. The first-round bust is now costing the Chiefs as they lose their one-game advantage in the fight for homefield advantage. They’re now battling with four other teams with only three losses in the AFC.
Their passing offense is ranked No. 8, but how much higher would it be without 26 drops by the receivers? Their rushing offense is No. 15, showing even this high-powered offense has limitations and could cost Mahomes another Super Bowl ring. This offense has weaknesses that Mahomes hides, but against the elites, he’s showing he’s merely human.
In sports, no loss is a good loss. However, this type of loss will make the team angry because they lost this game. The Eagles didn’t beat them. Defensively, they did very well holding the Eagles to 238 total yards, and QB Jalen Hurts to 124 passing yards and sacking him five times. They did their job defensively. It’s the type of loss that should have them eating at themselves and wanting to take it out on opponents. They can use this to drive them the rest of the season.
Who would have ever thought the offense would be the Chiefs’ problem? Since the loss of WR Tyreek Hill, this team’s aerial dominance has taken a hit. Despite winning a Super Bowl without Hill, it’s clear the receivers are this team’s Achilles heel and nowhere near as good as their corp of previous years.
