What Matters (and What Doesn't) from the Chiefs' Brutal Loss in Seattle

The Kansas City Chiefs' Sunday Night Football loss to the Seattle Seahawks was a drubbing in all three phases, leaving plenty of questions unanswered about how the Chiefs can recalibrate for the next act of their season.

However, not all of the Chiefs' issues that were exposed in Seattle are worth worrying about. Following a loss that thorough, let's take a look at some issues that do matter and some that don't—at least until further notice.

Matters: The pass rush fizzles out again

For the fourth time in six games, the Chiefs' defense failed to record a sack of the opposing quarterback. Even though some of the underlying metrics have supported the KC pass rush due to better performances in statistics like pressure rate, they've allowed opposing quarterbacks to be too comfortable, too often. With Sam Darnold as the target on Sunday night, the Chiefs just needed enough pressure to rattle Darnold, forcing him to start making characteristic mistakes. Instead, he threw and ran for several long third-down conversions.

Meanwhile, the Chiefs' only sacks since Week 1 came against a completely battered Los Angeles Chargers O-line last week.

Doesn't matter: Mansoor Delane's losses to Jaxon Smith-Njigba

Chiefs rookie cornerback Mansoor Delane had a couple of "welcome to the NFL" moments against Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, but nothing about Delane's losses indicate that he's anything other than an excellent young player who got beaten by a superstar.

Similarly to the long completion Delane allowed last week to Chargers wide receiver Quentin Johnston, the rookie was in excellent position, had his hand between the ball and the receiver's hands, and just couldn't land the final fingernail to break up the pass. Delane would love to have those plays back, I'm sure, but even elite cornerbacks lose to the best receivers at times. Delane looked like a near-peer to Smith-Njigba, not like a rookie out of his depth.

Matters: Wide receivers nearly shut out

If you would have told me before the game that rookie Cyrus Allen would lead the Chiefs' wide receivers in receiving yards, I would have been thrilled. Allen has seen very limited work to begin his first year in the pros, and a chance to break out through a heavily injured Chiefs WR room would have been well-timed.

Well, he did lead Chiefs wideouts in receiving yards, but he only had one catch for 18 yards—reeled in on the second play of the game.

With Rashee Rice (hamstring) sidelined again and Tyquan Thornton (ankle) remaining on IR through at least the vast majority of the regular season, the Chiefs needed someone to step up. Tight ends and running backs led the receiving box score with paltry stats, while Allen's 18 yards narrowly outpaced Xavier Worthy's three catches for 11 yards, Justin Watson's one for seven, Andrew Armstrong's one for three and Jalen Royals' zero for zero.

The Seahawks' defense is excellent, but those are not the stat lines of a functional unit.

Rice is the Chiefs' most reliable wide receiver, while Thornton was the most explosive. Worthy's role is murky, as his blazing 40-yard dash speed doesn't quite seem to translate to game speed, and much of his potential remains theoretical. Royals and Armstrong may have roles as "dirty work" receivers, but the Chiefs still need to find significantly more firepower in the passing game.

Doesn't matter: Kenneth Walker's quiet homecoming

As disappointing as Kenneth Walker's 14-carry, 36-yard performance was, there's no reason for his underwhelming stat line to overshadow his impact on the Chiefs' offense or what can be expected of him going forward.

With O-line uncertainty and the aforementioned woes in the passing game, the Seahawks knew what we all knew: the Chiefs' best chance for offensive success (and explosive plays) came with Walker, so the Seattle D played accordingly. While the star running back has shown that he can jump-start the Chiefs' offense against middling opponents, it's too much to ask for him (or any individual player) to thrive as the focal point of an otherwise-struggling unit against an excellent defense.

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