Chiefs playoff X-factors part 2; George Karlaftis, Mike Danna and complementary pass rush

Chris Jones is elite, but no pass rusher can do it alone. Part 2 of our X-factor series examines the importance of the "other guys" to playoff success.

The Chiefs have secured the #1 seed in the AFC. After an offseason in which their demise was predicted by many due to trading away Tyreek Hill and the AFC West arms race, Patrick Mahomes and company find themselves back in the same ol’ spot… the driver’s seat for the Super Bowl. With that in mind, I’ll be examining X-factors beyond the obvious people (Reid, Mahomes, Kelce, and Jones), and how they’ll determine Kansas City’s fate. In part 1 we looked at Isiah Pacheco and Kadarius Toney. Today, we look at George Karlaftis, Mike Danna, and the Chiefs’ pass rushers as a whole.

In the NFL, consistent pass rush is a sum of the parts of the defense.

We’ve talked about this often here, but it cannot be overstated. A single great pass rusher can take over individual plays, and even individual drives. But the very best of the best only “win” their snaps a quarter of the time or a little more. That’s not enough for a defense to get pressure frequently. We talked about this early in the year, when the Chiefs were generally only getting pressure when Jones was winning or by aggressive blitz tactics. Obviously sending extra rushers is one way to get to the QB, but it comes with a heavy risk, especially against good offenses/quarterbacks.

And so, if a team wants to get consistent pressure (“consistent” being the key word) without the risk of constant blitzing, it’s not just about having one great player. It’s about the supporting cast and the structure around which the whole group is built. And that brings us to George Karlaftis, Mike Danna, and the “other guys” in the Chiefs’ pass rush, who are the subject of Part 2 of our Chiefs playoff X-factor series.

While Jones will always be the sun around which the rest of the pass rush orbits, whether or not the Chiefs get the sort of consistent and heavy pressure necessary to affect the quarterback gauntlet they’ll face in the playoff depends on the performance of the supporting cast. And that pass rush may be the most important non-Mahomes issue determining Kansas City’s fate in the playoffs.

Let’s talk about Karlaftis, Danna, and the rest of the group, along with the importance of complementary pass rush at the highest level.