Seahawks vs Chiefs: Final Report Card, Players Grades for Kansas City

Jamie Squire/Getty Images

The Kansas City Chiefs looked awful in all aspects of the game tonight in a loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

With high expectations for the 2012 campaign, this game should have served as a decent barometer as to how the Chiefs will look this season; hopefully that isn't the case.

Let's take a look at the Chiefs' final postgame grades and evaluations. 

Quarterbacks

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Matt Cassel — D-

Cassel's good second quarter was sandwiched between two awful ones. Turnovers that led to touchdowns and not being able to place the ball where his receivers can easily catch it were the main culprits for such a horrible performance by Cassel.

Brady Quinn — C

Quinn was brought in late in the third quarter, but by then the game was out of reach. The Chiefs switched up the gameplan in the fourth quarter and Quinn never got an opportunity to gain any rhythm.

Runningbacks

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Jamaal Charles — C

Nothing spectacular out of Charles other than a nice 12-yard run in the first quarter. The best thing is that he continues to distance himself from his knee injury. Looks good so far.

Peyton Hillis — D

Hillis only had two carries for -1 yard. Not sure why he wasn't given more touches, but hopefully things are fine on this front.

Shaun Draughn — C

Draughn continues to impress and looks like a lock for a roster spot when the Chiefs trim down to the final 53 players. 

Nate Eachus — A+

Eachus stole the show in the fourth quarter and ended the game with 98 yards on 10 carries. Eachus is quickly becoming a fan favorite and will make roster decisions very difficult next week.

 

Wide Receivers

Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

Dwayne Bowe — C

The key for Bowe was to get his feet wet. Any production out of him tonight was a bonus. He was able to haul in one pass for nine yards.

Jon Baldwin —B

Baldwin served as one of Cassel's safety blankets tonight and was able to pull in six passes for a modest 37 yards. Hopefully the yardage total can increase in the regular season, but this is a good performance for the young wide receiver.

Dexter McCluster — A+

McCluster did exactly what the Chiefs need from him this season. He was the check down option for Cassel and didn't disappoint, even catching the only Chiefs' passing touchdown of the game.

Steve Breaston —C

While Breaston was targeted five times, he was only able to haul in two passes. He was covered hard for most of the game. As the Chiefs offense progresses, look for Breaston to have easier looks.

Tight Ends

John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE

Tony Moeaki —D

Moeaki was able to haul in a long pass from Cassel, but only after dropping two others that could have gone for long plays. 

Kevin Boss —D

Boss was on the field a lot, but wasn't able to get involved with the offense.

Offensive Line

Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

Offensive Line —C

The unit only gets this high of a grade because the running game came alive in the fourth quarter. The final rushing stats look great (25 carries for 145 yards and one touchdown), but Cassel and Quinn were pressured way too much in the passing game.

Seattle only finished the game with two sacks, but they batted five balls at the line of scrimmage. That tells us that the offensive line wasn't successful in engaging the opposing defense at the point of attack. 

The Chiefs must do better in protection and in getting the running attack going earlier in the game.

Defensive Line

Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

Defensive Line — D

The Chiefs were dominated in the trenches on both sides of the ball. But getting virtually no push on the defensive side allowed the Seahawks to control the game from the opening kickoff.

Even after holding Seattle to only three field goals early on, it was obvious that the Chiefs were either overmatched or out-coached the entire game. That all starts at the point of attack. 

Linebackers

Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

Linebackers — B-

Given that the linebackers were very active with the Seahawks' offense constantly making its way to the second level, the group actually did a decent job of holding its own.

Most of the damage was done in the trenches or in the secondary, which naturally gives the linebacking corps a pass for the overall horrible performance of the defense.

Derrick Johnson was able to tally a sack on a blitz as well.

Defensive Backs

Denny Medley-US PRESSWIRE

Defensive Backs — F

Rookie quarterback Russell Wilson shredded the Chiefs secondary all game long, namely Jalil Brown who gave up a couple big pass plays and was called for a preventable pass interference penalty.

Throw in a couple other pass interference calls and a blown coverage as tight end Kellen Winslow walked into the endzone for Seattle's first touchdown, and the Chiefs' secondary easily had the worst night of any position group on either side of the ball.

Special Teams

Peter Aiken/Getty Images

Special Teams — D

Dustin Colquitt and Matt Szymanski did a great job punting the football, but a busted coverage allowed Golden Tate to return a punt 92 yards for a touchdown. Throw in a missed field goal in Succop's only attempt and you get a substandard grade for a unit that could have easily shined with both the offense and defense playing so poorly.

Coaching

Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images

Coaching — F

The Kansas City Chiefs were hit with a couple jabs early. And when Kellen Winslow walked into the endzone in the second quarter for the knockout blow, it became apparent that the Chiefs were not prepared for this game.

The NFL is all about adjustments and Romeo Crennel and Co. failed to come up with answers to the Seahawks' constant barrage.

When the game was out of hand and the pressure was off, the fourth quarter actually settled down a bit. Crennel took this time to evaluate particular players who are close to the cut line. He deserves some credit for that, but it doesn't negate the the lack of performance prior to the fourth quarter.