Travis Kelce: reality dating show star, near-NFL record holder. The Kansas City tight end had the opportunity to set a league record on Sunday with his fifth straight game with more than 100 receiving yards. Instead, the Tennessee Titans limited him to just three catches and 41 yards.
Travis Kelce was close to making NFL history, but the Titans’ secondary got in the way
Tennessee left room for Alex Smith to throw deep, but the Chiefs couldn’t capitalize.
Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports
Even more impressively, they did it without one of their strongest coverage linebackers on the field after Sean Spence missed Sunday’s tilt with an ankle injury. Wesley Woodyard and Avery Williamson took on some of Spence’s standard assignments, but it was the team’s ability to help its linebackers that made the difference. Tennessee brought its safeties closer to the line of scrimmage and focused on KC’s biggest offensive weapon to help the Titans cover the dynamic tight end.
On some plays, Tennessee’s big linebackers were able to turn and run with Kelce to make plays.
Other times, those linebackers released once the target turned upfield, turning duties over to defensive backs like Kevin Byard and Da’Norris Searcy. Though it didn’t work on this play, you can see how the shared coverage limited Kelce’s window of opportunity on Sunday.
With their safety help floating close to the line of scrimmage and focusing on the tight end’s motions up the seam, the Titans effectively dared the Chiefs to throw deep by investing extra defensive back help on Kelce.
Alex Smith couldn’t deliver. The veteran passer threw for fewer than 6 yards per pass and finished the day with only 163 yards through the air. While he completed his first two passes of 15 yards or more, he attempted only three more shots downfield from there and completed only one.
Though sometimes the Titans didn’t have much to do with that:
Instead, Kelce had to settle for drawing even with Jimmy Graham and Chiefs legend Tony Gonzalez, who both topped out at four games in storied (and in Graham’s case, ongoing) careers.
PLAYER | TEAM | YEAR |
|---|
The fourth-year tight end has emerged as the Chiefs’ most dynamic pass-catching threat. His performance against the Titans leaves him just 43 yards from the first 1,000-yard season of his budding career. He currently leads all NFL tight ends in both receiving yards and receptions.
But while his rise has pushed Kansas City to the top of the AFC West, the team’s first coronation since 2010 will have to wait after the Titans came back for a thrilling 19-17 victory on Sunday. The Chiefs close out their schedule with showdowns against division rivals Denver and San Diego in Weeks 16 and 17, respectively.
The Titans can end an eight-year postseason drought by continuing to turn a season-long weakness into a strength. Tennessee’s defensive backs fell apart in losses to the Colts and Chargers. They also allowed Browns rookie Cody Kessler to throw for 336 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
On Sunday, that embattled unit held Smith to a 56.1 passer rating and delivered the team’s biggest win of the 2016 season. If the Titans’ secondary can hold up like it has the past two weeks — where opposing quarterbacks have averaged only 6.3 yards per pass — they’ll guide their franchise back to the postseason for the first time since 2008.
See More:
