The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the most dominant and physical defenses in the entire NFL. Due to the way things went for the team last year, many of these elements were established throughout most of the 2023 campaign. However, there is something that the defense The Chiefs consistently do well every week, and the results can be seen in Kansas City’s run defense.

In the team’s early years, under Andy Reid, the Chiefs defense was a unit where teams thrived if they relied on the ground game. This was still true in the first season after the arrival of Patrick Mahomes. However, with defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo on the sidelines, KC was ultimately as complete as ever in run defense.

The run stuffing under Spagnuolo generally materialized more in the second half of the season and in the playoffs. But for the entire 2024 season so far, the Chiefs are shutting down the opposing rushing attack. And their run defense stands out in more ways than you might think.

If you’re a fantasy football player with running backs preparing to take on the Chiefs, you might as well leave them on your bench. Few running backs even scored impressively in yards per carry against Kansas City.

In terms of pure rushing yards, the most the Chiefs defense has allowed to a running back in a single game is 58 (Jordan Mason in Week 7). Before that game against San Francisco, no running back with at least 11 carries in a game against Kansas City had even reached 50 rushing yards. This includes a roster of supreme talents like Derrick Henry, Bijan Robinson, JK Dobbins and Alvin Kamara.

To further put an exclamation point on opposing rushers, all four of these names are currently in the top 12 in rushing yards. Three of those four are in the top 10. In fact, Henry leads the league in rushing currently with a total of 946 yards. Henry And Dobbins each had their lowest rushing results against Kansas City. Both Robinson And Kamara had his second lowest rushing performance of the season against the Chiefs.

Just last week, the Chiefs run defense allowed just 33 rushing yards on 21 carries to the Las Vegas Raiders. That’s good enough for a pitiful 1.6 yards per carry. Alexander Mattison ended up with just 15 yards in 14 carries. Five other Raiders who had at least one carry combined for just 18 yards on 7 carries. Honestly, it’s hard to decipher which of these two points is more impressive.

The Chiefs defense has become exactly what Spagnuolo hoped it would have. They are able to meet runners at or behind the line of scrimmage to slow down the run. Kansas City can confuse offenses with their various disguises and defensive looks. The pass rush is totally versatile, a point that could be further emphasized with the commercial acquisition of Josh Uche. And best of all, their excellent run defense has forced teams to become one-dimensional. This allows the Chiefs defense to instill real fear in opponents.

This unit is built exactly how Spagnuolo envisioned it when the team rebuilt the defense a few years ago. All Chiefs defenders are instinctive and won’t be physically overpowered very often. Overall, these elements didn’t exist as much on the defensive end when the Spags first arrived in Kansas City. Getting that from a defense that is still largely young is an added bonus.

All of these aspects were on display in this incredible start from the Chiefs run defense. Instincts shine through when players like Drue Tranquill, Leo Chenal and Nick Bolton appear to have beaten the ball carrier to the point of attack before he gets completely open. The Chiefs also have a physical advantage throughout the front seven that is contagious for the entire depth chart among the top two levels of the defense. When given the chance to succeed, there is so much collateral damage that these top seven create by doing the dirty work.

NFL trends run in a circle over time and generations. It appears we are seeing a shift in offensive attacks throughout 2024. For the first time in a long time, teams are more comfortable with balance and support on the court. It was an identity of teams like the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles for a few years. They made it clear that they will tell you this over and over again on the ground. For others, having a strong running game was viewed more positively this year.

A lot of this is due to the way defenses are currently playing. The dual-height nature of the shells removes opportunities for explosive passes down the field. Many defensive units also look to get more speed than size on the field, which leads to lighter boxes in certain situations. Additionally, many NFL defenses simply see a greater volume of runs on the first or second tryas offenses look to stay ahead of the sticks and on the clock.

Having a strong run defense usually makes a bigger difference during the colder months of the regular season and during the playoffs. But for this particular campaign, the usage of running backs and the ground game is seeing a slight resurgence. Being able to rely on a defense that can slow down that zone of the opposing offense is key to winning games in this part of the season. This is especially true when most NFL games are decided by a single score.

For the Kansas City Chiefs, add their running ability to the list of things where they separate themselves from the pack.