Spreadsheet Warriors: Broncos

The latest newsletter from KCSN Sports Data Scientist, Joseph Hefner

Leo Chenal.

I’m being paid to write more words than that, so I guess I will, but frankly, it all boils down to Leo. On a day when very little was going well for the Chiefs, on offense or defense, Leo Chenal and the special teams bailed us out of a near certain loss to a division rival who’s beaten the Chiefs exactly once since 2015.

With 5 minutes and 57 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, the Chiefs had just scored a field goal to put them up 16-14. Butker tries to do a squib kick, but the ball lands outside of the landing zone, which gives the Broncos the ball at the 40 yard line, instead of the 30. A very methodical 12 plays later, and the Broncos have the ball on 4^th down at the Chiefs 17 with one second left in regulation.

They trot out their field goal unit, which includes OL Alex Forsyth, who had been knocked to the ground five different times in the two weeks leading up to the Chiefs game. The Chiefs special teams picked up on that, and when it counted most, Leo Chenal absolutely pancaked him en route to the game-winning field goal block. Here’s the replay of that block if you have yet to rewatch it for the 100^th time yet.

With the exception of that block, things were not looking as rosy for the Chiefs in this game.