Bills’ Edwards ought to, has to, must shred Chiefs

By Anthony Bialy  |   Friday, November 21, 2008  |  Comments( 148 )

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Well, if you have to pretty much run the table through December to have any hope of playing in January, facing the Kansas City Chiefs is a decent way to start. Coach Herman Edwards’ team has played to win the game once so far this year, and this is the best matchup the Buffalo Bills could hope for after putting themselves in a delicate position. It’s foolish to think that any NFL game will be easy, especially considering Buffalo’s recent play, but a different Edwards in Trent might be able to finally and mercifully get back to proficiency during the team’s second trip this year to Missouri thanks to facing a failing passing defense.

Defending throws is one of the many things Kansas City does badly, as it's ranked 27th in the category. The Chiefs are giving up 237.1 aerial yards per game, and the thing is that they’re letting it happen in big chunks. In fact, the Chiefs have permitted 31 passing plays of 20 yards or longer in 2008. When they lapse, they lapse big.

Those in coverage aren’t being helped by those who are rushing: Kansas City’s defenders have accrued a laughable six sacks over their 10 games, which is obviously the lowest total in the league; I checked, even though I didn’t feel like I had to. For comparison’s sake, even the second-worst sacking team in the Cincinnati Bengals has gotten 11. As for the top end, the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers stand tied for first with 36 sacks each, meaning that there are defenses that are in at least one regard provably six times better than the Chiefs’ unit.

Part of the problem is that they’re waiting for their key rookie to grow out of playing like a rookie. Defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey is currently recognizable by name and draft position but not his play, as this year’s fifth overall pick didn’t get his first NFL sack until Week 10 against the San Diego Chargers. It’s tough for an interior lineman to enter the pros and immediately dominate, and no matter the reason the fact remains that the LSU product is still adjusting to NFL life, an aspect the Bills must exploit.

Buffalo’s offensive line kept Edwards from getting pulled down in the fixture against the Cleveland Browns, and this time out it's facing a foe it must collectively pancake. Kansas City’s propensity for surrendering big passing plays means Edwards should have time to drop back and get Lee Evans involved without sinking to using the speedster wideout on screens. Josh Reed’s possible appearance may help assuage the quarterback’s confidence and accuracy issues, too, but whom the Bills are facing is more important than who’s returning.

Unfortunately, even with good protection against what appeared to be a weak foe, Edwards still put forth an effort that oscillated between bland and harrowing against the Browns. That said, the Chiefs are both bad and different: They employ a 4-3, unlike the four-linebacker setup that has given Edwards fits for about a month.

Facing the alignment could allow the recently bewildered passer to more easily identify coverage and rushing patterns. At this point, the Chiefs might as well change defenses between now and game time and play with only three down linemen: Their season couldn’t get any worse, and it might just confuse the opposing passer enough.

Short of having to face that insane abrupt shift in tactics, Edwards’ biggest enemy remains himself. He needs to straighten his head and sort out his football life. Luckily, the flailing Chiefs provide him with the best chance to do so. The problem is that if he can’t manage to play sharp, mistake-free football this Sunday, it’s entirely improbable he’ll do so in any other game this season, either.
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