KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sunday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Jacksonville Jaguars at Arrowhead Stadium is about as close as the NFL gets to having a matchup between an irresistible force and an immovable object.
The 4-0 Chiefs lead the NFL in scoring, while the 3-1 Jaguars have allowed the fewest points in the league. The Chiefs have the NFL’s hottest young quarterback in Patrick Mahomes and a strong group of skill players, and the Jaguars boast a defensive lineup full of good, young talent, led by cornerback Jalen Ramsey.
“It’s going to be fun,” Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill said. “This is by far the best defense we have faced. … We’ve got the best offense going against the best defense, the fastest offense against the fastest defense, so it’s going to be crazy, plays made everywhere.”
The team that makes the most plays is the likely winner of this early-season showdown. But it’s difficult to figure whether that will be the Chiefs or the Jaguars.
The Chiefs scored at least 38 points in each of their first three games before getting only 27 in Monday night’s win over Denver. The Chiefs were held to 13 in the first 3 1/2 quarters until they scored two touchdowns to overtake the Broncos.
They’re reliable in the red zone, scoring a touchdown on 82 percent (second in the league) of their trips inside the opponents’ 20. They convert 49 percent of their third-down plays (third). With just one turnover (first) and five sacks allowed (tied for first), they don’t beat themselves.
The Jaguars are their opposites. They lead the league not only in points allowed per game (14.0) but yards per game (259.3) and passing yards per game (164.3). They’ve allowed a touchdown on 25 percent (second in the league) of the opponents’ trips inside the 20 and just seven completions of at least 15 yards down the field (second).
“You look at them and you don’t find a whole lot of weakness really at any position,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “You can start right up front and go all the way to the back end and everything in between. … You love the challenge of playing against a team like this.”
Reid called the Jaguars arguably the best defensive team in the league. What’s not an argument is that this is the best defense the Chiefs have faced this season.
None of Kansas City’s first four opponents are in the top half of the league in scoring defense. Three are in the bottom eight. Granted, having already played the Chiefs does not help their ranking.
“They do a lot of things really well and they kind of do the same stuff but they do it to a very high [level],” Mahomes said. “They have a ton of talent over there. We’ve got to utilize our weapons and our offense and do what we can to attack them.”
The potential matchup between Hill and Ramsey is perhaps the most intriguing of the individual competitions. Hill, playing on a team with other top skill players such as tight end Travis Kelce, wide receiver Sammy Watkins and running back Kareem Hunt, doesn’t have top-10 receiver numbers but still has eight catches of at least 20 yards and also has a 91-yard punt return.
Ramsey is one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks.
“He thinks [highly] of himself,” Hill said. “He’s all right, I guess. I can’t wait to line up against him. I hope he presses me.
“He’s a great player. To get my name out there more I need to go up against more talent like him. I’m not calling [Denver’s] Chris Harris or nobody else bad, but he’s top dog right now so I can’t wait.”