5 questions from the Chiefs camp ahead of Panthers’ Week 9 clash

An inside look at the Chiefs camp ahead of the Carolina Panthers’ Week 9 game.

The Carolina Panthers face the stiffest of challenges in Week 9. They go into their game at the Kansas City Chiefs on the back of a three-game losing run and this is unlikely to get any better against the Super Bowl champions.

Andy Reid’s men have hit the ground running once again this term on their way to a 7-1 record. They possess the best quarterback in the business – Patrick Mahomes – and their offensive weapons could cause the Carolina Panthers an endless amount of problems at Arrowhead Stadium.

It remains to be seen whether Christian McCaffrey will be ready for a long-awaited return to the lineup after missing the last six games with a high ankle sprain. But that won’t alter the odds too much against such a talented team as the Chiefs.

The Carolina Panthers have their work cut out on Sunday.

The Panthers are 12-point underdogs for a reason. Kansas City looks well on course to defend their title and they will see this as another prime opportunity to take full advantage of some obvious frailties on Carolina’s gifted but depleted roster.

We virtually sat down with Matt Conner, the talented site expert at Arrowhead Addict for the inside scoop on the mood inside the Chiefs camp ahead of the contest.

The Chiefs have made a dominant start, what have you made of it?

The Chiefs entered the season with the theme of “run it back,” and they’ve been focused on exactly that. It’s interesting to watch a team that hadn’t won a title in 50 seasons look so focused as if they’d been here several times before.

Credit to Andy Reid’s coaching staff and impact veterans who lead well from the locker room to the field. This team knows they have to prove themselves all over again and they’re doing just that with each passing week.

Just how much better can this team get?

You saw what the Chiefs were capable of in their absolute steamrolling of the Baltimore Ravens in Week 3. Before and after that game, the Chiefs have, at times, played down to their opponent or strung together only a quarter or two of top-quality football—enough to put away teams.

That might sound like it contradicts the first answer, but these Chiefs are committed to learning from their mistakes. Basically, when all pistons are firing, there’s not a single team who can even hang with the Chiefs. If a team hopes to beat them, it will be more about K.C. beating themselves.

What problem do you think the Carolina Panthers pose?

I wouldn’t expect the Carolina Panthers to pose any real problem at this point. The Chiefs have taken care of nearly every single team through the toughest part of their schedule with their lone blemish a day filled with mistakes in all facets of the game—and even then they still rang up 32 points on the Raiders.

That says less about the Panthers and more about the Chiefs, but seeing the egg laid by Carolina against the Falcons, it’d be hard to take this very seriously.

Which areas could the Chiefs exploit?

The Chiefs’ weapons are really going to test the Panthers’ secondary, although it will be fun to see young talents like Jeremy Chinn for the first time. But it’s hard for any young defense to keep up with Patrick Mahomes’ ability to extend the play given his natural chemistry with playmakers like Tyreek Hill, Mecole Hardman, and Demarcus Robinson—each of whom has track star speed.

Add other elements like Travis Kelce and the potential of Sammy Watkins returning and it just gets ugly for most opponents.

How do you think the game will go/score prediction?

The spread was pretty big to open the week, and I think that sort of double-digit victory makes plenty of sense.

I’d say Chiefs 30, Panthers 13.

We at Cat Crave would like to thank Matt Conner for his time and if you’re looking for the best coverage of the Kansas City Chiefs, then look no further than Arrowhead Addict for news, analysis, and everything in between.