KANSAS CITY, Mo. — New Orleans had averaged nearly 150 yards rushing through the first four weeks of the NFL season.
The Saints now average only 127.2 yards per game after running into the buzz saw that has become the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense during a 26-13 loss Monday at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Led by linebacker Nick Bolton — who had a game-high 11 tackles, including two for a loss with two hits on Derek Carr — the Chiefs bottled up Alvin Kamara, allowing him on 26 yards on 11 carries.
Nobody for New Orleans, which had 15 carries for 46 yards as a team managed only 220 total yards, fared particularly well.
“We’re going to stop that run,” safety Justin Reid said. “We’ve got 11 guys that tackle; our DBs (defensive backs) tackle. Some teams try and purposely run at the DBs, because DBs don’t tackle. Nah, you can try to run at the DB if you want; we’re going to cut you in half.”
Behind Bolton, cornerbacks Jaylen Watson and Trent McDuffie tied linebacker Drue Tranquill for second on Kansas City’s defense with five tackles, while Reid added four tackles.
“McDuffie gets a lot of credit — he’s playing like an All-Pro, and we just kind of take that for granted,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “But this Watson kid — man, he is playing his heart out and doing a great job for us at the other corner spot.”
Kansas City’s offense, which had averaged fewer than 330 yards in its first four games, broke out for 460 yards.
Patrick Mahomes authored his first 300-yard game of the season, but the reality is that the Chiefs rode a stingy defense to a perfect record through the season’s first month.
“We’ve won in different ways,” Mahomes said. “At the end of the day, our defense is playing their tail off and I think people are starting to realize that even more.”
Not that Kansas City’s defense is satisfied.
“There’s ways that we can continue to improve and get better,” Justin Reid. “I think that’s where this team excels with our personality is that we’re always chasing improvement. We’re never content with how we played last week.”
Look no further than the opening drive for proof that the Chiefs can get better on defense, especially after coughing points on the opposition’s first possession in each of the first four weeks.
When New Orleans won the coin toss, the Saints opted to receive the kickoff — hoping to grab an early lead.
“It felt like a challenge,” Justin Reid said. “A team wants to take the ball on you, they’re planning to go out there and score. They don’t take it to not go out there and score.”
Instead, safety Bryan Cook intercepted Derek Carr to snuff out New Orleans’ game-opening drive and the rout was on.
“We’ve got a mission that we’re all bought into and there’s only one goal in mind,” Justin Reid said. “But we’re just going to take it week by week.”
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