Chiefs’ Week 1 Snap Counts vs. Chargers: Hollywood Brown thrust into No. 1 receiver role following Xavier Worthy’s injury
Breaking down the Chiefs’ snap counts from the Week 1 loss to the Chargers.
The Kansas City Chiefs fell 27-21 to the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1 on the world stage in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
The Chiefs had to adjust on the fly after second-year WR Xavier Worthy, considered the team’s top option with Rashee Rice suspended, was injured on the third offensive snap of the game. How did those adjustments play out on paper, and what could the team have done differently in this situation? What else can we learn about the team, given how the snaps played out in Week 1?
Below you’ll find a look at how the snaps came down in Week 1. If you’re viewing on mobile, you can find an image of the Chiefs’ snap counts here. Snap counts via the NFL Game Stats & Information System.
| Player | Position | Offense | Defense | Special Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| C. Humphrey | C | 61 (100%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| J. Simmons | T | 61 (100%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| K. Suamataia | T | 61 (100%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| T. Smith | G | 61 (100%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| P. Mahomes | QB | 61 (100%) | – | – |
| J. Taylor | T | 61 (100%) | – | – |
| M. Brown | WR | 57 (93%) | – | – |
| T. Kelce | TE | 51 (84%) | – | – |
| J. Smith-Schuster | WR | 49 (80%) | – | – |
| T. Thornton | WR | 44 (72%) | – | 3 (12%) |
| I. Pacheco | RB | 31 (51%) | – | – |
| N. Gray | TE | 25 (41%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| K. Hunt | RB | 23 (38%) | – | – |
| B. Smith | RB | 8 (13%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| J. Brownlee | WR | 6 (10%) | – | 5 (20%) |
| R. Tonyan | TE | 5 (8%) | – | 1 (4%) |
| X. Worthy | WR | 3 (5%) | – | – |
| J. Moore | OL | 2 (3%) | – | 4 (16%) |
| N. Remigio | WR | 1 (2%) | – | 8 (32%) |
| B. Cook | S | – | 65 (100%) | 8 (32%) |
| N. Bolton | LB | – | 65 (100%) | 5 (20%) |
| T. McDuffie | CB | – | 65 (100%) | – |
| C. Conner | DB | – | 64 (98%) | 7 (28%) |
| J. Watson | CB | – | 64 (98%) | – |
| G. Karlaftis | DE | – | 55 (85%) | 5 (20%) |
| D. Tranquill | LB | – | 54 (83%) | 5 (20%) |
| C. Jones | DT | – | 51 (78%) | – |
| M. Danna | DE | – | 44 (68%) | 5 (20%) |
| J. Hicks | DB | – | 39 (60%) | 16 (64%) |
| C. Omenihu | DE | – | 38 (58%) | – |
| J. Tillery | DL | – | 30 (46%) | 5 (20%) |
| D. Nnadi | DT | – | 26 (40%) | 5 (20%) |
| L. Chenal | LB | – | 23 (35%) | 16 (64%) |
| K. Fulton | CB | – | 15 (23%) | – |
| A. Gillotte | DE | – | 9 (14%) | 12 (48%) |
| J. Cochrane | LB | – | 5 (8%) | 21 (84%) |
| M. Tuipulotu | DT | – | 3 (5%) | – |
| J. Williams | CB | – | – | 21 (84%) |
| N. Williams | DB | – | – | 20 (80%) |
| J. Bassa | LB | – | – | 16 (64%) |
| C. Roland-Wallace | CB | – | – | 16 (64%) |
| C. McDonald | LB | – | – | 16 (64%) |
| H. Butker | K | – | – | 9 (36%) |
| J. Winchester | LS | – | – | 7 (28%) |
| M. Araiza | P | – | – | 7 (28%) |
| M. Caliendo | OL | – | – | 4 (16%) |
| W. Morris | OL | – | – | 4 (16%) |
Chiefs’ Week 1 Snap Count Observations:
Preseason work or not, Hollywood Brown is your new No. 1 wide receiver
The Chiefs didn’t seem particularly prepared to lose their No. 1 receiver just three offensive snaps into the game. You could tell as much with the disjointed offensive play early in this game, but you could also tell by the receiver rotations. Hollywood Brown played more snaps than any offensive player not named Patrick Mahomes or one of the starting offensive linemen, which isn’t ideal for a player who missed the entire preseason. You can understand why the timing was off at times on his team-leading 16 targets and 10 receptions. Brown was followed by JuJu Smith-Schuster (80%) and Tyquan Thornton (72%). However, the Chiefs didn’t rotate their receiver group heavily beyond that. Jason Brownlee saw six offensive snaps. Nikko Remigio saw just one offensive snap. This appears to be by design as Kansas City attempted to establish a rhythm between Mahomes, Brown, Smith-Schuster, and Thornton.
Chiefs’ preseason star disappeared, and a rookie RB was nowhere to be found
Chiefs TE Robert Tonyan led the team in receiving during the preseason, yet he managed just five offensive snaps and no targets during the game. Heck, Noah Gray only had one reception for three yards. After losing Xavier Worthy, those are two players I would’ve looked to get more involved in the passing game. Tonyan, especially, after he demonstrated his receiving threat potential in training camp and the preseason.
It appeared that rookie RB Brashard Smith might see some action, even at wide receiver, in this one. He was on the field on the opening drive, but he only ended up playing eight offensive snaps in total throughout the night. I think this was a matter of trust. They probably planned for some situational usage, but the pressure that the Chargers were getting required a more seasoned player working in the backfield.
Some key defensive pieces didn’t play enough for the Chiefs to find success
Leo Chenal (23): Chenal can do far too much for your defense to let him play just 35% of the snaps. He needs more pure-edge-rush repetitions, but he also should’ve been on the field to spy QB Justin Herbert on the third-and-14 conversion that sealed the game.
Kristian Fulton (15): The Chiefs’ best sub-package combination in the secondary is to get Trent McDuffie in the slot at all costs. It can’t be Chamarri Conner as frequently as it was this week, or it’s going to be a long season. Fulton (or rookie Nohl Williams) needs to play more opposite Jaylen Watson for that to happen.
Ashton Gillotte (9): The rookie appeared to be the most effective non-Chris Jones pass-rusher at times on Friday. He was injured, which might have contributed to his low snap totals, but Mike Danna (44) and George Karlaftis (55) got far too many snaps in the rotation.
Marlon Tuipulotu (3): Chris Jones playing 78% of the defensive snaps isn’t sustainable. It’s especially tough when Derrick Nnadi and Jerry Tillery are both splitting snaps next to you. Why elevate Tuipulotu if he’s only going to play a handful of snaps?
Quick hits:
- Marlon Tuipulotu, Josh Williams, Nohl Williams, Jeff Bassa, Chris Roland-Wallace, and Cooper McDonald played only special teams snaps. In the first week of the season, I expected more rotation on defense from the Chiefs to keep guys fresh.
- Mike Caliendo and Wanya Morris were the only offensive players not to get a snap on offense on Friday.
- Bryan Cook, Nick Bolton, and Trent McDuffie were the only defensive players to play 100% of the snaps. Cook appears to have slid into the Justin Reid role in that regard.
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