News Chiefs Team Notes

[Kansas City Chiefs]

The Chiefs’ coaching staff has plenty of respect for the Jaguars

The Kansas City Chiefs are riding high after Sunday’s big 37-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens. But there is no time to rest on their laurels — because in Week 5, they’ll be on the road to play the Jacksonville Jaguars on “Monday Night Football.”

“There are no easy games in this league,” defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo told reporters on Friday. “There is no easy offense to defend.”

Spagnuolo knows what he is talking about. The Jaguars — now 3-1 — are riding a two-game winning streak. Under the leadership of new head coach Liam Coen, Jacksonville is clicking in all three phases.

“They’re really good,” declared special teams coordinator Dave Toub during his Friday media availability. “I mean, they had a touchdown last week. [Parker] Washington — the punt returner? He’s got an unbelievable burst. His get-up to full speed is really impressive when you watch tape.”

Toub is also impressed with two rookie running backs who are getting work in the return game: LeQuint Allen Jr. and Bhayshul Tuten. The latter clocked a 4.32-second 40-yard dash time at last spring’s NFL Scouting Combine.

“[He’s a] guy that we loved coming out,” added Toub. “But he is explosive and can get around you; he hits it north and south. They’ve got the total package in the return game.”

Toub also admires Jacksonville special teams coach Heath Farwell.

“[He] does a great job,” said Toub. “He was a great player — and now he’s a great coach. I coached against him when he was at Minnesota, [so] we go way back. But he’s doing a great job. He’s got those guys flying around.”

Kansas City offensive coordinator Matt Nagy sees an opportunistic Jaguars defense that will make opponents pay for mental errors.

“There’s a lot of tipped footballs,” observed Nagy. “Sometimes those tips are at the line of scrimmage with the D-line, and some of these that you’re seeing are in the intermediate levels.”

Part of this comes from the Jaguars’ rookie cornerback Travis Hunter, who also plays wide receiver with the offense; he clearly has the ability to catch the ball. But Nagy believes Hunter isn’t the only Jacksonville defender with a nose for the football.

“They adjust well to the ball — and instead of dropping the interception, they make the play,” noted Nagy. “They do a good job in zone, kind of reading the quarterback’s eyes in the middle of the field… It’s a credit to their coaching staff — and it’s a credit to the players executing it.”

According to Spagnuolo, the dynamic nature of Jacksonville’s offense begins with its coaching.

“They’ve put together a really good system,” noted the coordinator, “where they’re doing things in the pass game that move the ball — and they do some things with tempo. I think they’ve done a really nice job.”

A longtime fan of the Jaguars’ quarterback Trevor Lawrence, Spagnuolo thinks the fifth-year quarterback looks very comfortable in the new scheme.

“You don’t usually see that right off the bat,” said Spagnuolo, “but they sure have put it together pretty good, pretty quick. You know, it’s resulted in three wins and a bunch of points.”

It helps that the Jaguars boast a trio of young skill players — not only Hunter, but wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. and running back Travis Etienne, too — who are among the league’s most explosive athletes at their positions.

“I mean, throw the tape on of these guys and it’s like, ‘Wow!’” marveled Spagnuolo.

Still, the coordinator thinks that limiting the Jacksonville offense starts with stopping Etienne.

“Like all these games that we play where people are going to run the football,” he explained, “if we don’t stop that first, then it becomes a long day.”

Spagnuolo also believes that center Robert Hainsey — who followed Coen over from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — is a key player in the running game.

“Anytime you can have the center in the middle of it,” remarked Spagnuolo, “and he obviously knows Liam’s system because he was with him, I think that’s been a little bit of the glue.”

While stopping the run may be job No. 1, the wide receivers still present their own set of challenges — and it starts with Thomas.

“He’s a really good player,” Spagnuolo said of the second-year wideout. “He’s a guy we’ve got to be concerned with.”

Then there is the rookie phenom Hunter. From a purely athletic perspective, he might be the league’s most electrifying player. He is definitely on the coaching staff’s radar.

“I think he gets better and better every week,” said Spagnuolo. “They’ve got the makings of a really good offense.”

Since the Chiefs are coming off a big win — and will also have another big primetime matchup against the Detroit Lions in Week 6 — the team could overlook a Jacksonville squad that has struggled in recent years. But based on what the coaching staff is saying about the Jaguars, there seems to be little chance of that.

Source: https://www.arrowheadpride.com/kans...ing-staff-has-significant-respect-for-jaguars