The Kansas City Chiefs (1-2) and New England Patriots (2-1) will meet on Monday Night Football at Arrowhead Stadium. The game will wrap up Week 4 and is a contest between 2013 playoff teams who have struggled to gain the playoff form they displayed a year ago.
Patriots vs. Chiefs 2014 live stream: Time, TV schedule and how to watch online
Kansas City aims to beat the Patriots for the first time since 2005 in a wild primetime setting.
Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
New England is 2-1 but not playing great football, coming off a tight 16-9 win at home over the lowly Oakland Raiders. Once the best offensive team in the league, New England has struggled to put together a consistent offensive attack. Some of the issues start up front with the offensive line having a rough go of it early in the season. Tom Brady has been pressured on slightly less than 37 percent of his pass attempts, according to Pro Football Focus, the 10th worst mark in the league. When Brady has had time to throw, he's struggled to connect with his receivers. Brady completed just 58.8 percent of his passes during the first three weeks. He's never completed less than 60 percent of his throws in any full season. Tight end Rob Gronkowski, traditionally one of Brady's favorite targets, hasn't been a major factor yet. He's working his way back from knee surgery and has just 11 receptions for 116 yards on 23 targets. With the offense struggling to find a groove, the Patriots have relied on a stingy defense. New England has allowed just 4.4 yards per play this season, the lowest mark in the league.
Kansas City sits at 1-2, but the Chiefs are coming off their best performance of the season. Despite being without a bevy of starters including Derrick Johnson, Eric Berry and Jamaal Charles, the Chiefs crushed the Miami Dolphins 34-15 on the road last Sunday. Knile Davis picked up the offensive slack, rushing for 132 yards and a touchdown while Joe McKnight caught six passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns. The defense was led by a fierce pass rush which sacked Ryan Tannehill four times. Kansas City made the playoffs last season on a formula based on great defense and solid, but not spectacular offense. Alex Smith and the Chiefs offense controlled the ball, limited turnovers and hit big plays with the help of Charles. After struggling to do that during the first two weeks, Kansas City looked strong last week. Smith played a clean game while the running attack led the way and the defense got after Miami. Going against a solid defense, the Chiefs may need to be even better. They lost the turnover battle last week, but still outclassed the Dolphins. The return of Charles should help. The Chiefs' running back is expected to play despite an ankle injury.
How to Watch
Where: Arrowhead Stadium
When: 8:25 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Announcers: Mike Tirico, Jon Gruden
Online Streaming: Verizon NFL Mobile
Odds
The Patriots are favored by three points over the host Chiefs with the over/under at 44.5, per OddsShark.
Nuts and Bolts
Without Gronkowski at full-speed, the Patriots have to rely on Julian Edelman to move the chains. Edelman has been the only reliable receiver for Brady this season, catching 22 passes for 260 yards. The defense has kept New England afloat and the Patriots have the No. 1 pass defense in the NFL.
A major matchup in this game will be Tamba Hali and Justin Houston against the Patriots offensive line. New England has been a mess up front since dealing Logan Mankins to the Buccaneers this preseason. Kansas City has nine sacks on the season, led by Hali, Houston and nose tackle Dontari Poe. Rookie Dee Ford is also being rotated in and showed promise last week against Miami.
Further Reading
For more on the Patriots, please check out Pats Pulpit.
To read up on the Chiefs, head over to Arrowhead Pride.
See More:
