How big of a problem will Josh Gordon be for the Buffalo Bills? I had a chance to talk with Matt Conner of Arrowhead Addict to find out the answer to this question as well as some others ahead of the Week 5 matchup.
The Buffalo Bills are set to play arguably the biggest game on their regular season schedule when they travel to Kansas City to play the Chiefs. A win would symbolic put their AFC Championship Game loss behind them but also have significant ramifications this season in conference standings and the opportunity to earn the first seed in the AFC.
Since this is such a big game, I wanted to learn more about the Kansas City Chiefs and there is no one better to ask than Matt Conner, who is the Site Expert for Arrowhead Addict.
1) The biggest question for the Kansas City Chiefs seems to be on the defensive side of the ball. What do you believe is the reason for their struggles this season?
This is the big question. Every coordinator/coach is back. The biggest names are back. A few new faces are in place, but by and large, this is a unit that has played a lot of football together. Yet for some reason we’re seeing misalignments, poor angles, miscommunications, and just miserable tackling. It’s a meltdown that defies explanation, but everyone keeps saying the right things about making adjustments and giving it time.
2) One of the big storylines this week is the return of Josh Gordon. How much do you expect him to play and do you believe he will have an impact in at least this matchup?
This offense clicks on another level entirely when there’s someone across from Tyreek Hill who can exploit the one-on-one matchups so freely offered by defenses who zero in on Tyreek or Travis Kelce. Sammy Watkins could do that, when healthy, but no one else seems to be able to consistently separate themselves to keep defenses honest.
The reviews on Gordon are strong and if he can even provide a handful of snaps on which he’s getting open like Watkins could, it’s going to make a real difference.
3) The Kansas City Chiefs invested heavily in their offensive line in the offseason. How have the results been through four games and do you believe they made the necessary improvements?
Five new starters. Three rookies. Rave reviews. Orlando Brown Jr. is solid outside and learning as well as Lucas Niang on the right side. Buffalo’s pass rushers will have success there going against Niang as a rookie from 2020 who opted out last year and for those with the burst to make a move inside on Brown.
That said, the interior is rock solid with Joe Thuney, Trey Smith and Creed Humphrey. The push the Chiefs are getting inside is just bowling over everyone in the ground game.
4) For at least Buffalo Bills fans, the team to beat is the Kansas City Chiefs and they are their primary competition in the AFC. This is probably the biggest game on the regular season schedule due to the Chiefs ending the Bills season last year. Does this matchup carry the same weight for the Chiefs (players or fans) or how is this rivalry viewed?
I think everyone circled the Buffalo Bills game on the same level as the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens, just knowing all three matchups were coming in the first five weeks on the schedule. Basically if the Chiefs could pull away with wins in the early going, they were going to be set in the AFC, which made the game feel important.
Now that the Chiefs lost to the Ravens and even gave one to the Chargers in Week 3, this game is more important than anyone thought it would be.