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Kansas City Chiefs' camp to-do list: Fix a leaky run defense
By Adam Teicher
Friday, July 31, 2015
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- The turning point for the Kansas City Chiefs and their run defense last year happened in the first half of the season's first game. One of their top run defenders, linebacker Derrick Johnson, tore his Achilles tendon in the second quarter against the Tennessee Titans and was lost for the year.
The Titans ran wild against the Chiefs after Johnson's departure on their way to an upset victory.
From a personnel standpoint, things would only get worse for the Chiefs. They lost another top run defender, end Mike DeVito, for the season in the same game with the same injury as Johnson. Safety Eric Berry played in just six games because of injuries and illness.
Each of the players is back, Berry somewhat improbably after he was diagnosed last November with Hodgkins' lymphoma. This sparked hope the Chiefs will be a lot more formidable against the run.
The Chiefs allowed at least 140 rushing yards in five of their seven losses last season, including the game against the Titans. The defeat that perhaps stung the most was a November loss to the Oakland Raiders, who were winless at the time. The Chiefs allowed 179 yards and six yards per carry in a game that would have eventually put them in the playoffs had they won.
But a new problem surfaced when the Chiefs lost nose tackle Dontari Poe, who recently had surgery to remove a herniated disk. The likelihood is that the Chiefs will play all or at least a significant portion of their season without Poe.
He won't be easy to replace. The 346-pound Poe is difficult to clear from the middle of the line.
The Chiefs will try at least initially with Jaye Howard. They may eventually move DeVito over the nose.
Whatever they do, whether Poe plays a down this season, the Chiefs need to consistently shut down the opponent's running game.
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