Chiefs Vax Pack

The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, with the Packers missing their star quarterback Aaron Rodgers who is in Covid-19 protocols. Patrick Mahomes threw for a touchdown and the Chiefs’ defense throttled Rodgers’ replacement, second-year quarterback Jordan Love.Love, who was making his first career regular season NFL start, threw an interception as well as a late touchdown to give the Packers hope. 2018 NFL Most Valuable Player Mahomes and his array of offensive weapons were able to run out the remainder of the fourth quarter though to clinch a vital victory as the struggling Chiefs search for some consistency.

But it was the Chiefs’ defense that was the star of the show, stifling the Rodger-less Packers, something Chiefs coach Andy Reid praised afterwards.”I thought our defense did a nice job. We didn’t hold back,” Reid told the media. “Guys played hard and aggressive, and you’ve seen things happen when teams are favored. You have to bear down every week the best way you can.”

To put the inexperienced Love under pressure, the Chiefs chose to blitz at a higher rate than normal, at a 54.3% rate, the highest in a game for the Chiefs since 2018.

And after the defeat, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur put some of the blame for Love’s struggles on his shoulders. “Within plays, there are longer developing plays, and if you can’t protect, it’s kind of hard to throw from your back,” LaFleur told the media. “There were a couple plays where he got out of some stuff … but I’m disappointed that we didn’t deal the ball faster and call things that might show a little bit quicker for him.”

Missing the NFL’s reigning MVP, it wasn’t surprising the Packers looked slightly toothless. Last week, it was announced Rodgers would miss the game against the Chiefs as he was placed in the NFL’s Covid-19 protocols.