Despite Struggles Elsewhere, Chiefs' Special Teams Unit Has Become Heroic
Nine games into the 2021-22 campaign, the Kansas City Chiefs have seen it all. They've come out victorious in games in which they've trailed by two possessions in the fourth quarter, and then subsequently lost games in that same fashion.
They've reaped the rewards of a once-historically futile defense that now ranks among the top-10 in points allowed over the last three weeks and at the same time, they've watched as their culture-changing offense has slipped to 25th in offensive DVOA over the last four weeks. In shorter terms, they've showcased an elite offense and an elite defense — as well as unacceptable versions of each— all in, well, the short term.
With the Chiefs seeking to find their footing consistently on both sides of the ball, they've had to rely on unconventional methods to, as Patrick Mahomes declared it, "find ways to get wins." As of late, they've received a remarkably notable boost from the third phase of the game: the special teams unit.
With respect to the Chiefs' defensive effort, one could argue that Sunday's game ball should go to punter Tommy Townsend for his efforts in pinning an already shaky Green Bay Packers offense deep in its own territory time after time. Following the win, head coach Andy Reid made mention of the Chiefs' field position victory and their blocked field goal, as well as referring to the Week 9 contest as Townsend's "finest game." In total, here's where the Packers opened each of their offensive drives following punts:
- Own 2-yard line
- Own 12-yard line
- Own 15-yard line
- Own 8-yard line
- Own 47-yard line (Townsend kicked from the back of his own end zone).
This doesn't even include Townsend's punt in the second quarter that ended up being recovered by Chris Lammons, another unheralded star from the 13-7 win, that ultimately helped the Chiefs push their lead to double figures. You've likely never taken part in a "best gunners in the NFL" debate at the dinner table, and the chances are you never will. But Lammons and Marcus Kemp introduced themselves to that conversation against the Packers, with long snapper James Winchester earning a nod for his clean game as well.
Because the Chiefs' newfound conservativeness on offense and their inconsistencies on defense have become so pronounced, it's easy to overlook what special teams coach Dave Toub has done with his unit. Over the last few weeks, it has jumped to No. 1 in both weighted DVOA and special teams DVOA through its work in each phase. Everything from Townsend's punting to Harrison Butker's accuracy has helped Kansas City's razor-thin margin of error in recent weeks.
As it stands today, there have been 20 punters with at least 10 punts that have been downed inside the 20-yard line; Townsend is the only player to have done so on fewer than 25 punts.
The correlation between field position and victories is somewhat self-explanatory, but it's arguably become one of the biggest factors in the Chiefs' back-to-back wins, especially for a defense in dire need of confidence. On average, the Chiefs have ranked No. 4 according to Football Outsiders in terms of starting field position when their defense takes the field (26.2). To illustrate its importance: the ten teams among the top-10 are a combined 48-37, making up much of the current playoff ecosystem.
Under normal circumstances, it's generally never ideal to see a punter this often — even on a Chiefs team with eight top-10 finishes in DVOA over nine seasons under Reid. But for this year's version of the Chiefs, a team struggling to find consistency and learning how to win ugly, it's hard to imagine that they've ever needed it more than they do now.
