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Chiefs defense rattles the 49ers again, this time with the help of 2 rookies

21 October 2024Last Update :
Chiefs defense rattles the 49ers again, this time with the help of 2 rookies

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — With 11 minutes left in the game, Justin Reid, the Chiefs’ most experienced safety, made a touchdown-saving tackle.

Reid used all of his strength to shed the blocking attempt of San Francisco 49ers receiver Chris Conley, then wrapped his arms around the hips of running back Jordan Mason to stop him just 3 yards from the end zone. The home crowd inside Levi’s Stadium roared, sensing that the 49ers were close to turning the tables on the Chiefs, who had pulled off an entertaining comeback victory in each of the teams’ previous three meetings.

After his tackle, though, Reid felt pain in his left hand. He signaled to his replacement, rookie safety Jaden Hicks, to take the field in his place.

The 49ers, trailing by nine points, faced a critical third-and-goal play from the Chiefs’ 5-yard line when Hicks was on the field for just his second snap of the game. Hicks’ assignment was a simple one: help cornerback Trent McDuffie bracket Conley. When Hicks turned his eyes back toward quarterback Brock Purdy, he was in the proper spot in the end zone to make a diving interception, the first highlight of his career. Hicks’ interception ended the 49ers’ comeback attempt, ensured the Chiefs remained undefeated with an emphatic 28-18 win and proved to be the apex moment of the defense’s stellar performance.

“You can imagine,” Hicks said, “but you never know what it’s going to feel like exactly.

“It was awesome, seeing all the guys hyped after. That’s a good feeling.”

One of the most hyped teammates to congratulate Hicks was Reid, who was having his hand taped when the takeaway happened.

“It’s a unity that we have, not just in our (secondary) room but across the whole defense,” Reid said of Hicks’ success. “We have a team that truly prepares the next man. We help the next man, we’re all in and we communicate daily. We talk about, ‘What if this happens? What if that happens?’ We take time after practice. We meet up on our own time and we still talk (about) coverage. It works and guys are confident.”

In a rematch of Super Bowl LVIII, a game in which Kansas City achieved an unforgettable 25-22 comeback victory in overtime, the Chiefs defense Sunday was able to disrupt Purdy’s rhythm. Similar to the Super Bowl, Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo blitzed Purdy as often as he could. The Chiefs (6-0) pressured, hit and intercepted Purdy, who threw three interceptions.

One of the major differences Sunday was that two of the interceptions were made by a rookie. While Hicks, a fourth-round pick, explained his takeaway in the locker room, several veterans were dapping up undrafted rookie cornerback Chris Roland-Wallace.

With six minutes left in the third quarter, Roland-Wallace was on the field because starting cornerback Jaylen Watson left with leg cramps. The 49ers (3-4) were in Chiefs territory and looking to regain the lead, but Roland-Wallace was in the right spot in man coverage to collect his first interception. The takeaway was the result of another blitz from Spagnuolo that generated pressure on Purdy.

“It’s so exciting because you get a chance to go make a play on the ball,” Roland-Wallace said. “Every week, I just prepare as if I’m playing, so when my name does get called, I don’t worry about blinking.”

Before Sunday’s game, Hicks and Roland-Wallace had played just 13 combined defensive snaps.

The Chiefs are expected to continue to rely on Roland-Wallace because Watson left in the fourth quarter with a left ankle injury. Watson exited the locker room on crutches and with his left ankle and foot in a cast.

“Spags does a great job with the different schemes and personnel groups,” coach Andy Reid said of Spagnuolo developing rookies and young players. “He’s the best in the business at what he does. He did a great job with the scheme part of it and the players love all that stuff. They all get to be a part of it and contribute.”

The Chiefs pressured Purdy on 28.1 percent of his 40 dropbacks, including 50 percent on third-down plays, according to TruMedia.

The 49ers played most of the game without running back Christian McCaffrey (Achilles) and receivers Brandon Aiyuk (right knee), Deebo Samuel (illness) and Jauan Jennings (hip). Spagnuolo had the secondary play man coverage throughout, forcing Purdy to throw the ball into tight windows. In fact, the Chiefs’ outside cornerbacks — Watson, Roland-Wallace, Trent McDuffie and Nazeeh Johnson — aligned in press man coverage on a season-high 59.8 percent of their snaps. The quartet did not allow a reception on five targets when playing press man coverage, according to Next Gen Stats.

McDuffie, the Chiefs’ best cornerback, allowed just one reception for 15 yards on four targets in man coverage.

“Spags does a great job of mixing it up,” linebacker Drue Tranquill said. “We had a great blend of calls. From the overloaded pressures we had back-to-back, some the two-high shells and some man-to-man, there’s a variety. We have so many good guys that we’re able to do a lot of different things.

“When you have (Chris Jones) in the game, there’s a huge magnitude of attention paid to him and it allows you to do some things with their (pass) protection that benefits the team.”

Defensive end George Karlaftis either hit or was in Purdy’s face before two of his interceptions. The Chiefs’ trio of interceptions came when the secondary played man coverage, the unit’s most in a game under Spagnuolo, who joined the team in 2019. Each of Purdy’s giveaways came in Chiefs territory, too.

The defender Andy Reid praised the most, saying his performance was at an All-Pro level, was Justin Reid, who led the Chiefs with nine tackles and an interception.

Reid’s takeaway came immediately after the Chiefs failed on a fake punt near midfield, a direct snap that went to Hicks, who gained only 1 yard when he needed to gain 2 yards for a first down.

“I saw that Purdy had pressure in his face,” Reid said. “When you see pressure and you see a guy have a (throwing) window, that gives you leeway as a free safety that you can come out of the post. You know the ball is coming out, so I was able to dive in and make a play on the ball.”

When the 49ers were in the red zone with 11 minutes left, Spagnuolo surprised Purdy with another tactic: He dropped eight defenders into coverage. But Karlaftis was still able to hit Purdy as he threw, and his pass was intercepted by Hicks. In a one-on-one matchup against right tackle Colton McKivitz, Karlaftis unleashed a spin move that led to his pressure of Purdy.

“I’m not going to give away all my tricks on camera,” said Karlaftis, who also finished with a sack. “You have a feel throughout the game and you take your shot to a certain extent. That’s what it was.”

Just before the final minute, Spagnuolo was animated when the Chiefs defense forced Purdy into an incompletion on the 49ers’ 2-point conversion attempt. Spagnuolo responded by pointing to several defenders and praising them after their final snap.

“We talk about it, a situation where they’re trying to make it a one-score game,” Tranquill said. “It’s like ‘Shoot, we just had a touchdown scored on us.’ The natural, human reaction is to hang your head. But you stop them on the 2-point conversion, and it’s still a two-possession game.

“It’s a massive play even after you give up a touchdown. He’s harped on that throughout the year.”

(Photo of Jaden Hicks: Kyle Terada / Imagn Images)

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