Steve Spagnuolo Awaits Unique Chance Vs Raiders

Last week, the Kansas City Chiefs once again got another victory against a division opponent. This now makes them 33-6 in division games since the start of the 2015 season. Meanwhile, a chance to improve that record even further lies ahead this week. The Las Vegas Raiders will make their way to Arrowhead Stadium to close out the regular season series with the Chiefs.

While defeating the Raiders is not mostly new to this current Chiefs regime, there is actually another streak that the team could extend this Sunday. And it all lies in the hands and mind of Kansas City defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. There is an opportunity to keep Derek Carr winless at Arrowhead in the month of December.

It is not just that he cannot win in Kansas City when the colder months surface. As we will mention later, Carr’s overall numbers have been horrific. Spagnuolo made him look depressed in the first meeting this season. Additionally, that result in Vegas was due to much of the same mistakes the Chiefs have seen from Carr in the past.

Today, we will dive into some of the more clear tactics that Kansas City has utilized. The Chiefs also have payback on their mind, due to the early season road win the Raiders got in Kansas City last year. Let’s kick it off.

House Of Horrors

Let’s start off by listing some of the more significant stats of Carr in road trips to Kansas City during December. They are as follows:

• 0-6 record
• 192 passing yards per game
• Four passing touchdowns
• Seven interceptions thrown
• Completion percentage of 59 percent

Overall, you can see that Carr has failed to provide any level of offensive consistency. The ability to put points on the board has been extremely spotty. Whereas with the turnovers, it appears to snowball for Carr and the Raiders offense. He is essentially guaranteed to throw at least one interception when entering the confines of Arrowhead.

His lone win at Kansas City? It was a warm, sunny day in October. Furthermore, the attendance was limited because of the COVID-19 pandemic. You of course do not want to make those meaningless excuses. Kansas City’s defense was caught off guard in that game by Carr taking chances deep, as well as the speed of the Raiders receivers.

However, in colder, December trips to Kansas City, Carr becomes just as fixated inside that environment, as he does when the opposing pass rush gets in his head. Colder games have greatly affected his ball placement, timing and how often he tests the deeper parts of the field.

Around FPC

NFL: 2022 Raiders Draft Prospect: C Tyler Linderbaum

NFL: Chiefs Reaction: A Denver Dozen

NFL: Game Recap: Bengals Fall 22-41 to Chargers

NHL: Senators’ Brady Tkachuk Leading By Example

Wrestling: WWE Releases More Wrestlers, Including John Morrison & Hit Row

PODCAST: Full Press NFL Podcast Ep 22: QB Futures; Pats/Bills; Week 13 Props and Predictions

Mixing Coverages

Let’s start to look at some of the things that Spagnuolo incorporates to force mistakes from Carr. One thing the Chiefs start to do really well when their defense is rolling, is mixing coverages. This keeps both the opposing quarterback and opposing receivers on their toes. Moreover, it creates opportunistic chances for the Kansas City secondary. Steve Spagnuolo has shown this against Carr in the past.

In 2019 at home, Carr threw two interceptions right into the waiting arms of the Chiefs secondary. Tyrann Mathieu acted like he was playing man coverage on a slot route. He then turned that look into a break to the outside and an adjustment that resulted in the interception. What Mathieu was actually doing included an underneath shade on the outside route, maintaining inside leverage and in turn forcing Carr to throw the ball higher.

Another interception in that game came from Juan Thornhill. Spagnuolo allows his cornerbacks to sit in a zone from time to time, while having them pass off receivers to the second or third level defenders. On a play where Bashaud Breeland stayed on the outside against a slant route, Thornhill read the eyes of Carr and exploded downhill. The safety jumped the route and took it to the end zone for a Chiefs touchdown.

Going back to the first meeting this year, Spagnuolo continued to mix what both the linebackers and secondary were showing to Carr. Kansas City would sometimes show that they were in man-free coverage. Instead, the linebackers would work to find depth in the shallow areas and the safeties worked into the intermediate areas. Other times, Kansas City mixed in zone coverage where the safeties would go from being closer to the line of scrimmage to then dropping and finding the sticks.

Disguising Blitzes

This is arguably the greatest trick that Steve Spagnuolo brings to the table. As far as quarterbacks and teams not being able to know when his extra pressure is coming, Spagnuolo’s success rate is fairly high. Kansas City has also built a faster and more powerful unit recently to help fit Spagnuolo’s vision. The speed and power dynamic from guys like Mathieu, L’Jarius Sneed, Willie Gay, Chris Jones and Melvin Ingram have allowed Spagnuolo more opportunities to disguise blitzes.

As for Carr, he has not routinely been able to get the ball out quick. This does two things. Kansas City’s defense is not forced to adjust on the fly and make stops in space. Meanwhile, Spagnuolo can continue to take gambles and wait for the Chiefs to overwhelm Carr. When that happens, the Raiders quarterback fails to keep his eyes downfield. Carr has also not found much success when working outside of the pocket.

Forcing Receivers To Fight Through Contact

There are a few things that Spagnuolo asks of his defensive backs. This includes keeping plays in front of you and playing smart. On the flip side, Kansas City has built a secondary that can play the aggressive, in your face style that Spagnuolo wants. The trio of Sneed, Charvarius Ward and Rashad Fenton have started most of the year at cornerback. All three have begun to grow and establish a more physical brand of coverage at their position. This brings confidence to the secondary players once they figure it out. Furthermore, the Chiefs are able to play to the tune of a suffocating defense, especially once they can take a lead.

Kansas City has other options at their disposal as well. Last week, Deandre Baker returned to the lineup and provided length and toughness against Denver. Mike Hughes can also play bigger than his size and frustrate opposing receivers at the catch point. No matter who it is, Kansas City has consistently been able to throw off the timing for Carr, throw his receivers off balance during their routes, or force Carr to throw prayers into tight windows under Spagnuolo and his tutelage.

Be on the lookout for more FPC Chiefs articles later this week. For more great sports and NFL content, stay tuned to Full Press Coverage.

– Braden Holecek is the Kansas City Chiefs managing editor for Full Press Coverage. He covers the NFL. Like and follow on Follow @ebearcat9//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js Follow @FPC_Chiefs//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js and Facebook.