Is the Chiefs roster better than 2023, Part 2: The defense
Looking at whether the 2024 defensive roster has taken a step forward... or backwards.
We’ve made it through the first, second, third, and fourth waves of free agency as well as the draft (and undrafted rookie free agent signings). That means the roster, as it currently stands, is largely complete for the 2024 season. Which makes for a good time (in between reviewing draftees’ film) to talk about the state of the roster and what it looks like compared to 2023.
Is this year’s Chiefs team better than last year’s Chiefs team?
In Part 1 of what turned into a two-part series (I hate it when that happens… but also sort of love it), I examined every position group on the offensive side of the ball to try and determine the answer to that question. I came to some conclusions on the QB, RB, WR, TE, and OL spots on the roster, and walked away feeling pretty good (though not perfect) about how Brett Veach has shored up the roster following a year in which the offense took a step backwards.
That leaves us with the other side of the ball. Before we jump into it, though, it’s worth noting just HOW good the defense was last season by virtually any metric or measure one wants to utilize (particularly the passing defense).
Tied for 2nd in the league in yards per pass attempt allowed
1st in the league in 2nd half points per game allowed (6.9 PPG!)
We could go on, but you get the point. The defense, led by Chris Jones and an exceptional secondary (along with a deep LB group), was able to consistently stymie opposing passing attacks and, through that, opposing offenses. Contrary to other seasons where Steve Spagnuolo defenses started slow, in 2023 the defense started hot and remained one of the best defenses in the league throughout the course of the season.
In the playoffs, on the biggest stage, the defense somehow stepped up even more. They faced 4 of the top 6 scoring offenses in the league last season and held every one of them below their average, some by a wide margin. Here’s how they did against each team, with their point output vs the Chiefs compared to their average in parentheses:
#2 SF- 22 pts w/ OT (28.6)
#3 MIA- 7 pts (27.9)
#4 BAL- 10 pts (27.7)
#6 BUF- 24 pts (26.6)
That’s an absolute HEATER of a playoff run, facing one great offense after another and only allowing one to even come close to it’s normal output. When the lights shone brightest, the defense was exceptional. And that was a huge part of why the Chiefs are hanging their 3rd Super Bowl banner in 5 seasons.
Of course, now it’s 2024, and there have been some changes in personnel. So let’s take a look at the 2024 roster as it currently stands and see whether the Chiefs have gotten better, worse, or stayed similar in each position group. It makes sense to split up the defensive line into edges and defensive tackles for purposes of what we’re doing given all the bodies there, so let’s start with them (with the understanding that multiple guys play both inside and outside in Spags’ defense).