Sep 7, 2014; Kansas City, MO; Titans defensive end Karl Klug (97) sacks Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith (11) in the second half at Arrowhead Stadium. Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – There’s no need to paint a pretty picture when it’s impossible to hide the obvious.
The Chiefs (0-1) were outplayed in every facet of the game during the Tennessee Titans’ (1-0) one-sided 26-10 win at Arrowhead Stadium.
First downs? Titans 24, Chiefs 15. Total net yards? Titans 405, Chiefs 245. Time of possession? Titans 37:44, Chiefs 22:16.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid explained it best in five words during his postgame press conference.
“This was a rough game,” Reid said.
The Chiefs head coach also revealed bad news on top of the humbling loss, as two defensive starters who were carted off the field and the starting right tackle suffered injuries.
“(Outside linebacker) Derrick Johnson and (defensive end) Mike DeVito ruptured their Achilles tendon,” Reid announced. “Jeff Allen has a bicep strain and we’ll see how he is in the morning.”
While Reid conceded an Achilles injury is normally a season-ending injury, he said the Chiefs will evaluate Johnson and DeVito overnight.
“They normally are,” Reid said, “but we’ll what happens.”
The Chiefs got on the board first on a 35-yard field goal by rookie kicker Cairo Santos, who clanked it off the right upright. Perhaps a sign of the ugliness to come from the Chiefs the rest of the game.
The Titans then scored 23 straight points while the Chiefs offense looked like a team wearing a blindfold in the dark.
Adding salt to the wound was the Chiefs watching a former teammate, kicker Ryan Succop, go a perfect 4-of-4 on field goals, including a long from 47 yards.
Succop lost his job of five years to Santos.
“This was a special game today,” Succop said. “There’s no question about it. It’s something that I don’t think I’ll ever forget this game.”
Meanwhile, the Titans sacked quarterback Alex Smith twice in the first half. He completed 8-of-14 passes for 91 yards and an interception for a 47 QB rating through the first two quarters.
Smith proved worse through three quarters with a brutal 33.1 rating through three quarters. Only a meaningless fourth-quarter 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Anthony Fasano moved Smith’s rating to 45.2.
“It’s not fun playing football like that and going out there,” Smith said. “It’s not fun losing and certainly losing like that.”
Smith, who earlier in the week signed a four-year, $68 million extension, finished the game completing 19-of-35 passes for 202 yards and a touchdown against three interceptions. He was sacked four times.
The interceptions are troubling when considering Smith threw just seven for the entire 2013 regular season.
But Reid, as is his custom, took full responsibility.
“He was trying to make something happen and things didn’t work,” Reid said of Smith. “Again, those are calls down there, opportunities for shots, and they had them covered. Again, I’ll take that responsibility.”
The loss cast a shadow on a team that arguably needed to start fast.
The next four games before the Week 6 bye come against the Denver Broncos, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots and San Francisco 49ers, a tough slate on paper, at least.
“It is one game,” Smith said. “We’ve got a lot of football ahead of us and we’ve got a big one coming up.”
WHERE WAS CHARLES?
Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles finished the game with 19 yards on seven rushes, adding 15 yards on four catches.
Obviously, the Chiefs primary weapon gaining 34 total yards can’t be a recipe for success.
“They took away a lot of what we had designed for him,” coach Andy Reid said. “That was one of the reasons.”
Meanwhile, former Chiefs, current Titans running back Dexter McCluster gained 46 total yards (29 rushing, 17 receiving).
SACKS
The Chiefs recorded four sacks, arguably the lone bright spot on a dark day.
Outside linebacker Justin Houston had two, while defensive linemen Allen Bailey and Vance Walker recorded one each.
Houston, who is in the final year of his contract, had his eighth multi-sack game on his career.
UP NEXT
The Chiefs (0-1) travel to Denver in Week 2 to take on the Broncos in an AFC West divisional rivalry.
Kickoff is scheduled for 3:25 p.m. CT on CBS.
