Three keys to the game for Chiefs against Saints

The Chiefs have a tough opponent coming to town in the Saints. With KC's injury riddled offense, it is important to steal as many wins as they can. Here are three x-factors heading into MNF.

The Kansas City Chiefs are 4-0, which is nothing to feel apologize for, but every win has a one-score ball game and now there is reason to believe it is about to get tougher. There is an art to winning ugly and the Chiefs have proven they are the league's best at it. 

After losing Isiah Pacheco, Hollywood Brown and Rashee Rice for the foreseeable future, they will need to take a page out of their 2023 playbook, lean on their defense, and play complementary football. They figured it out last week, defeating the Los Angeles Chargers with elite defense from their cornerbacks and Chris Jones, as well as high-quality performances from Kareem Hunt, Xavier Worthy and Travis Kelce on offense. 

This week the 2-2 New Orleans Saints come into town with old friend Derek Carr quarterbacking the team. The Saints came out of the gates with a head of steam and even still have the best point differential in the NFL at plus-57. While they did dominate a Bryce Young-led Carolina Panthers team and perhaps an overrated Dallas Cowboys club, they have since dropped two in a row to the struggling Philadelphia Eagles and the Atlanta Falcons, who the Chiefs just beat in Georgia. 

Still, with the Chiefs figuring out who they are, after losing their biggest identity in funneling the offense through Rashee Rice, this game will be no easy task. According to PFF, the Saints have the second-graded offense in the league and the sixth defense. Let’s dive into what Kansas City needs to do to slow down another quality team.