Why Chris Jones has to be salivating to play Bengals
The Kansas City Chiefs are set to kickoff the AFC Championship at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday afternoon against the highflying Cincinnati Bengals. It is the fourth straight season in which the Chiefs have hosted the AFC title game. Most of the talking points and storylines around this game will center around the quarterbacks and skill […]
The Kansas City Chiefs are set to kickoff the AFC Championship at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday afternoon against the highflying Cincinnati Bengals. It is the fourth straight season in which the Chiefs have hosted the AFC title game.
Most of the talking points and storylines around this game will center around the quarterbacks and skill players. Patrick Mahomes has an opportunity to play in another Super Bowl, while Joe Burrow is looking to grab the biggest win of his young career.
Add in Tyreek Hill, Ja'Marr Chase, Travis Kelce, and Joe Mixon, it makes sense to focus on the talented weapons on each offense. With that said, the attention needs to be on the line of scrimmage.
BENGALS' GLARING WEAKNESS
The struggles along the Cincinnati Bengals' offensive line are well-documented. Cincinnati was criticized for selecting wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase over offensive tackle Penei Sewell in April's NFL Draft due to the lack of protection for quarterback Joe Burrow.
Chase has proven to be well worth the fifth overall pick. The phenom out of LSU has had a rookie season for the ages. Burrow and Chase have a connection that is rare, which has led to the Bengals reaching the AFC Championship.
That said, the holes are still there at offensive line. Defenses have been able to exploit the Bengals' glaring weakness and put pressure on Burrow. In fact, Cincinnati nearly lost in the Divisional Round thanks to porous offensive line play.
The Tennessee Titans' defense feasted on the Bengals. Jeffery Simmons had a super star-caliber game, recording three of the Titan's nine-forced sacks. The Titans lived in the Bengals' backfield all game long.
This laid a blueprint for the Chiefs, in some way. The problems with the Bengals along the offensive line are well known, but it was very evident last week. No matter what Cincinnati tried to do, the Titans had an answer — and then some.
All the Kansas City Chiefs need to do is turn on the tape from the Tennessee Titans game to know where to exploit.
WHY CHRIS JONES IS PRIMED TO TAKE OVER
Chris Jones has proven to be among the elite defensive line talents in the NFL. Aside from Aaron Donald, you would be hard-pressed to identify a better interior defender in the league. Jones is that dominant of a player.
Jones is a plus pass rusher and is strong defending the run. He drew several double-teams against the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round, as Buffalo did all it could to neutralize 95. Expect the Bengals to do something similar in hopes of slowing Jones down.
However, that might not matter.
Chris Jones had a pair of sacks in the week 17 meeting versus the Bengals. Cincinnati edged out a close victory over the Chiefs in the game, but Jones made his presence felt in a big way. Bengals head coach Zac Taylor had high praise for Jones following the game.
The Chiefs do not blitz nearly as much as the Titans like to. So, that is an aspect where Kansas City might change up after struggling to slow down the Bengals' passing game in the earlier matchup due.
It's a copycat league, after all. Having Tyrann Mathieu back in the lineup gives defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo some different options.
Even without blitzing, Chris Jones is the type of player that can take over a game due to how disruptive he is. He gets to the quarterback as well as the best of them, and he is known for batting passes down when he doesn't get all the way to the passer.
Kansas City has not forgotten about that week 17 loss. The Chiefs are well-aware that they were outplayed and are looking to make sure that doesn't happen again, especially when playing at home.
"I learned that they outplayed us," Jones said. "It's going to be a battle."
Chris Jones enters the AFC Championship on a mission, and that is not good news for Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals.
Featured image via Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
