5 things to watch in Chiefs preseason game vs. Atlanta Falcons

The Kansas City Chiefs enter their second 2018 preseason game Friday night when they face the Falcons on the road in Atlanta.

There are plenty of stories to keep an eye on heading into the game. Make sure when you’re tuning in on Friday to think of these five things that will surely be important to this game and to the team’s future.

Is the starting offense more in rhythm with more snaps?

The Chiefs starters on offense weren’t terrible in Week 1, they simply couldn’t establish any sort of rhythm. That will happen when you only get nine snaps during a game. They also had some plays in that game that they collectively probably wish they had back.

This will assuredly be a better week for the Chiefs starters on offense. They know what to expect and they know what they needed to improve from their first game.

Hopefully Patrick Mahomes’ eagerness to connect on an explosive play won’t cause him to make any bad decisions. Really the most improvement we can hope for is a way to establish a better rhythm and sustain a drive. Even if it stalls at the goal line that will be better than what we saw in the first game.

Also look for better individual performances specifically along the offensive line.

All eyes on Andrew Wylie and Cameron Erving

Speaking of the offensive line, the Chiefs have two guards who are going to be under the microscope on Friday. Fans and analysts were quick to throw Cameron Erving to the wolves after his first snap against the Texans partially caused a big hit on Mahomes. Andrew Wylie will make his first start at right guard for the team as Laurent Duvernay-Tardif recovers from a concussion.

These two are going to be evaluated closely by the team, but you should also be watching them. Each has a chance to make contributions in 2018. Keep in mind though this isn’t going to be an easy matchup for them. The Falcons have a good and athletic defensive line group. If these two aren’t prepared for that it could be a very long day for Patrick Mahomes.

Alternatively if Wylie and Erving have solid outings the Chiefs could be feeling a lot more comfortable with their offensive line heading into the season than they have in years past.

Are any new players getting time with the first team?

During practice leading up to this weeks game guys like Marcus Kemp and Leon McQuay were getting repetitions with the first team. It’ll be interesting if this holds up when the Chiefs take the field in Atlanta on Friday.

It will also be interesting to see if any other players have earned the opportunity to get some playing time with the first team. Sure injury could force some guys into action, but perhaps the Chiefs have some plans to mix things up otherwise.

Here are some names to watch as far as first team action and just in general as well:

LB Ben Niemann
WR Gehrig Dieter
OG Ryan Hunter
WR Blake Mack
CB Tremon Smith
RB Darrel Williams
TE Alex Ellis
DT Derrick Nnadi

Armani Watts, Eric Murray and Leon McQuay have an opportunity to step up

The Chiefs young safeties all have a big opportunity ahead of them. They’re going against one of the high powered passing attacks in the NFL that features Julio Jones, Calvin Ridley, Mohammed Sanu, Justin Hardy and Austin Hooper. This is the chance for them to step up in a big way.

I want to see Armani Watts display the playmaking ability that was so often talked about coming out of the draft. I want to see Eric Murray dominate in the box and in man coverage. I want to see Leon McQuay get some snaps and prove that he deserves to be in the mix.

Which one of these guys is going to step up and be the player that the Chiefs need them to be in the absence of Daniel Sorensen and Eric Berry? Tune in on Friday evening and hopefully by the end of the game you’ll have that answer to that question.

If you don’t know the answer after Friday it might be time for the Chiefs to start hunting for free agent safeties.

Do the reserve linebackers look better?

Terrance Smith and Ukeme Eligwe weren’t good enough filling in for Reggie Ragland and Anthony Hitchens against the Texans.

The drop off from the Chiefs starters to the second string guys is huge. I can tell that just from watching Hitchens in practice and knowing what Ragland was able to do last year. If Eligwe and Smith must fill in for the starters again, I’d like to think the Chiefs decision makers will want to see improvement.

I wouldn’t be shocked if the Chiefs tried out Ben Niemann and Raymond Davison for a series with the first team defense. They both had better nights than Eligwe and Smith against the Texans. So it might be worth while to see if they can perform just as well against the top tier talent.

Either way keep an eye out for the Chiefs linebackers. If the immediate depth players struggle it could certainly bleed into the season when either Ragland or Hitchens eventually gets banged up.