Denver Broncos vs. Kansas City Chiefs: Inside The Villain’s Venue

The Broncos meet up with the Chiefs for the second time this season. The first time they met the Broncos emerged with a 17-10 victory. Since then the Chiefs have gone 2-4.

I asked Patrick Allen, editor of Arrowhead Addict, what has been going on with the Chiefs. Allen knows the Chiefs better than almost anyone in the nation so let’s find out what he thinks about Kyle Orton, whether the Chiefs can stop the Broncos run game, and what his prediction is for Sunday’s game.

With that said, let’s go Inside the Villain’s Venue with Arrowhead Addict.

Q: I can’t get past the first question without asking. Were you happy when the Chiefs claimed Kyle Orton and do you see him as a legitimate QB for the Chiefs in the future? How do you think he will perform on Sunday?

A: I was happy because at the time and until last week in fact, the Chiefs had a legitimate shot at the playoffs. Had they beaten Oakland last week this game would be for the AFC West title. Unfortunately, Todd Haley was an idiot and started Tyler Palko four games in a row. Rather than get Orton ready to play against the Chicago Bears, he started Palko and while the Chiefs won that game, they got Orton injured on a stupid trick play attempt. He missed a couple of more weeks which meant more Palko and more losing. You need look no further than that to understand why Haley has been canned.

But I digress.

Would the Chiefs be in a better position if Orton played more? Maybe. Then again, he had a chance to beat Oakland last week and to play for a playoff berth this week and he couldn’t get it done.

I like Orton. I think he is a capable QB. He probably does some things better than Matt Cassel as far as deep balls and going through his progressions. Cassel takes a little bit better care of the football and is better passing in the red zone. Given the choice between the two, I guess I’d go with Orton. If I want my team to win a Super Bowl though, I don’t think either one of them is the right guy.

Q: The Broncos ran up, over, and through the Chiefs in their last meeting. Do you think the Chiefs will do a better job stopping the run this time around?

A: That isn’t necessarily true. The Broncos ran for a lot of yards but if you go back and look at the box score you’ll see the yards per carry were actually not very good. Once the Chiefs figured out the running attack in the second half, they did a pretty good job of slowing things down.

I don’t say that to take anything away from Denver. The Broncos can run the ball and run it well. The Chiefs contained ok last time but they couldn’t stop it, per say, even though they knew it was coming. That is impressive.

The Chiefs’ strength is their pass defense. When a team comes at them with an aggressive rushing attack they tend to struggle because their safeties cheat and get burned. It happened twice against the Raiders.

It is going to be an interesting game. I think Denver will break off a few plays but the Chiefs D has been playing well and they will keep things close.

Q: With the Chiefs beating the Packers two weeks ago, do you think interim head coach Romeo Crennel has a good chance of securing the head coaching position for next year?

A: I do. The win over the Packers was the first quality win the Chiefs have had in some time. They have struggled against the NFL’s elite so to see them take down the mighty Pack shows that they CAN play with the best of them when everything goes right.

This team doesn’t need to be rebuilt. It needs better QB play and it needs depth but the pieces are there for them to compete. Crennel offers continuity and that is what the Chiefs need right now.

Q: Had the Chiefs not struggled with injuries this season where to you think they would have finished in the AFC West?

A: I think they’d of won it. I say this because Jamaal Charles is just such a difference-maker that I think he wins one of KC’s close games all by himself. KC had four close ones against the Broncos, Steelers, Chargers and Raiders that they all lost. Charles could have probably made the difference in at least one if not two of those games. Since three of those four games were against division opponents, it would have made all the difference.

But those are the breaks.

Q: Finally your prediction for Sunday’s game?

A: I really respect what the Broncos have done this year and playing in Mile High is really tough. That being said, I think the Chiefs are going to be really fired up for a number of reasons. They want to help Orton get some revenge. They want to get the job for Romeo. They want to wash the bad taste out of their mouths from last week. I also think they were embarrassed by the way Denver ran right at them last time. I envision a pretty emotional game and I think the Broncos will be playing a little tight, for obvious reasons.

I think KC gets the better of the Broncos this time.

Chiefs 27, Broncos 17

Thanks to Patrick for taking the time out!

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