Chiefs’ snap counts in Week 11: Frank Clark has big game, RBs shuffle after injuries
With a career-low 182 yards passing, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes didn’t have his best statistical game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
But the KC signal-caller made the most of his 68 snaps by tossing a touchdown pass and rushing for 59 yards on five carries in the Chiefs’ 24-17 win.
Here’s how the rest of the Chiefs’ snap counts broke down Monday night.
Running backs
Darrel Williams (29, 14 on special teams), LeSean McCoy (27), Damien Williams (12), Anthony Sherman (9, 19 on ST)
The running back position became a war of attrition as the game progressed.
Damien Williams suffered a rib injury late in the second quarter and did not return to the field after halftime.
McCoy, who scored a touchdown, left the game in the second half with what Chiefs coach Andy Reid called “something with his head.”
Darrel Williams stepped up and produced 35 yards rushing and a touchdown on 11 carries.
As a team, the Chiefs totaled 130 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 27 carries, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt. Mahomes’ rushing totals helped boost the production.
Wide receivers
Sammy Watkins (63), Mecole Hardman (52, 12 on ST), Demarcus Robinson (39, 6 on ST), Byron Pringle (11, 18 on ST), Tyreek Hill (7), Gehrig Dieter (3, 10 on ST)
The Chiefs’ wide receiver corps suffered a blow when Hill left the game very early with a hamstring injury. The injury occurred in the first quarter on a deep pass and Hill immediately went to the sidelines, where he received immediate attention.
With Hill down, Hardman saw action on 52 snaps and totaled two catches for 13 catches on four targets.
Watkins led the receiver group with two catches for 26 yards on three targets.
Dieter, who was elevated from the practice squad to the active roster over the weekend, did not record a target on offense.
Tight ends
Travis Kelce (65), Deon Yelder (30, 11 on ST)
Not having Blake Bell, who was inactive with an ankle injury, didn’t stop the Chiefs from utilizing a lot of “12” personnel groupings (one running back, two tight ends).
Yelder saw plenty of action with a career-high 30 offensive snaps in a single game. While he didn’t record a catch, his role alongside Kelce was more in blocking support.
Kelce was his usual dependable self and became the focal point of the passing game with Hill out. The tight end responded with seven catches for 92 yards and a touchdown on 10 targets.
Offensive line
Eric Fisher (68, 4 on ST), Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (68, 4 on ST), Mitchell Schwartz (68, 1 on ST), Andrew Wylie (68, 4 on ST), Austin Reiter (61, 3 on ST), Stefen Wisniewski (7, 4 on ST), Cam Erving (4 on ST)
With Fisher and Duvernay-Tardif back in the lineup, the Chiefs trotted out their actual starting front five to begin a game for the first time since Week 2.
The offensive line, though, suffered a brief scare late in the second quarter when Reiter left to be evaluated for a concussion. Reiter was out of the game only temporarily, though, returning to action after halftime.
Wisnieski filled in at center for seven snaps during Reiter’s absence.
The return of Fisher limited Erving’s playing time on offense. Erving played at left tackle for eight games while Fisher recovered from a mid-September surgery.
Defensive line
Frank Clark (69), Tanoh Kpassagnon (65, 4 on ST), Chris Jones (63, 4 on ST), Derrick Nnadi (41, 4 on ST), Joey Ivie (27), Khalen Saunders (24), Mike Pennel (23, 4 on ST)
Clark was all over the field with his 69 defensive snaps, totaling five tackles, a sack, three quarterback hits, a tackle for a loss, a pass defensed and a forced fumble. His play in the fourth quarter helped secure the Chiefs’ win, and his pass rush helped force an interception, which Nnadi secured.
After being inactive in Week 10, Pennel returned to action and recorded 23 snaps. He made his presence felt with three tackles, a sack, two tackles for a loss and two quarterback hits.
Linebackers
Anthony Hitchens (51, 4 on ST), Damien Wilson (44), Ben Niemann (29, 13 on ST), Reggie Ragland (17), Dorian O’Daniel (23 on ST), Darron Lee (19 on ST),
The starting linebacker group of Hitchens, Wilson and Ragland rebounded nicely from Week 10, when they combined for just seven tackles, to produce 19 against the Chargers.
Hitchens led the way with 10 tackles, Wilson totaled six, while Ragland totaled three on just 17 defensive snaps.
Defensive backs
Juan Thornhill (80, 5 on ST), Tyrann Mathieu (77), Daniel Sorensen (71, 18 on ST), Charvarius Ward (65, 8 on ST), Bashaud Breeland (63), Morris Claiborne (32), Rashad Fenton (30, 10 on ST), Jordan Lucas (6, 8 on ST), Armani Watts (3, 20 on ST)
The Chiefs’ defensive secondary led the charge against the Chargers. Mathieu, Sorensen and Fenton each recorded an interception off Philip Rivers, who totaled four in the game.
Mathieu and Sorensen combined for 16 tackles in the game, and Sorensen recorded the game-clinching pick as the Chargers attempted to comeback.
Lucas left the game with a shoulder injury.
Specialists
Dustin Colquitt (10), James Winchester (10), Harrison Butker (9)
The specialists also rebounded after Week 10’s debacle. Colquitt, in particular, drew praise from Reid after the game for the ability to “maintain field position with the coverage teams.”
Inactives
Alex Okafor (ankle), Kendall Fuller (thumb), Blake Bell (ankle), Darwin Thompson, Nick Allegretti, Jackson Barton, Chad Henne
This story was originally published November 19, 2019 at 10:53 AM with the headline "Chiefs’ snap counts in Week 11: Frank Clark has big game, RBs shuffle after injuries."
