“Defense wins championships.” Maybe the Kansas City Chiefs have taken this sports phrase a bit too seriously this season. Like the team that once relied on its offense to win games, it has seemingly switched alliances. Yeah, that’s right. Don’t you think the Chiefs are a bit different this season with a 3-peat on the line? Well, NBC broadcaster Cris Collinsworth thinks so and may have exposed something that fans knew but weren’t ready to talk about.

Popping up on the Dan Patrick Show, the former Bengals receiver candidly assessed why the Chiefs are not talked about as much as they used to: “Because they’ve converted into a defensive team.” Well, judging by their production on either side of the gridiron. Collinsworth is not really wrong in his stance, claiming that the Chiefs have converted into a defensive-minded team. Like in those 15 wins they got this year, the Chiefs didn’t score over 30 points in a single game.

And also don’t forget their one-score wins. Those games almost gave the Chiefs Kingdom a heart attack every week. But no matter how they finished their games, a win is always a win in the NFL. See, without their defense, maybe the Chiefs won’t even be standing where they are right now. Their defense ranks fifth in limiting the opponents from red zone scores (51.85%). Besides just protecting their end zone, the Chiefs blitz game is almost at the next level. They have forced 59 QB hurries, which shows how much their defense steps up all over the gridiron.

Now, you could be wondering if the Chiefs are shutting down the passes on the air, so why not run plays on the ground? Let’s just say the Chiefs are also pretty sorted in that department. The reigning Super Bowl Champions have only allowed 4.1 yards per carry. On average, they allow their opponents not more than 101.8 rushing yards per game. So, you know what will happen if you try to take them on the run. To give you another example, the last time the Chiefs and the Texans met, KC gave up just 84 rushing yards. This shows how much their defense is capable of in ensuring those Ws keep on coming.

But besides their clear improvement in defense, Collinsworth pointed out something that they had been missing in recent years. And that could probably be one of the reasons behind Kansas City’s conversion into a more defensive-minded team.

Is Tyreek Hill’s absence hurting Patrick Mahomes’ offense?

Let’s rewind for a bit: Remember the 2018 season when Patrick Mahomes had just thrown more than 5,000 receiving yards and 50 TDs? Yeah, maybe you do. But do you remember the player he had in his receiving corps? Well, if you don’t, we are talking about none other than Tyreek Hill. His connection with Mahomes was one of the main reasons why the Chiefs were putting a show on the offense every week.

Even Collinsworth misses that version of Chiefs, which apparently is lost somewhere in recent years, “When we’ve all like were overwhelmed watching the Kansas City Chiefs it was because Tyreek Hill and company and they were taking the top off and they’re throwing bombs and Mahomes was you know it was just insane. They were scoring points all over the place, and it’s really not what they are right now.” See, we get you, Collinsworth, and maybe some members of the Chiefs kingdom could also relate to you there.

Since Hill’s departure, Mahomes has only recorded a single season over 5000 receiving yards. But he never managed to score those 50TDs again. And as for Tyreek Hill, he has continued to eclipse 1000 receiving yards season until 2024. For the first time in almost 4 seasons, Hill couldn’t reach that benchmark of 1000 yards. There are rumors that his time with the Dolphins may come to an end soon. Will we see a reunion of Hill and Mahomes yet again in red and white? What do you think?