The Kansas City Chiefs Odd Stack Package
Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is not only a master of scheme but also a wiz at putting his players in positions to succeed. There is no better example than his use of his Odd Stack package.
Regardless of the defensive performance in the last Super Bowl, the Chiefs’ defensive coordinator, Steve Spagnuolo, is arguably the best defensive mind in football now that Bill Belichick is not roaming the sidelines in Foxboro. I’m sure Eagles fans will want a word. Coincidentally, Spags is winning on defense, similarly to Belichick, who structured his defenses around his unique personnel.
The Patriots were a top-ten defensive standard when Belichick was in charge. Say what you want about the crusty old coach; he had a knack for defense, understanding market deficiencies in the NFL, and recalibrating his scheme to match his personnel, sometimes weekly. In many ways, Spagnuolo is doing that in Kansas City.
Outside of All-Pros Chris Jones and Trent McDuffie, the Chiefs' defense is essentially a ‘no-name’ defense, which fits the workmanlike mentality and culture Kansas City wants to bring each week. Since ‘21, the Chiefs have drafted and developed much of their talent on defense. The homegrown nature of the system has allowed Spags and the front office in Kansas City to hand-select and develop players for their system.
Instead of pursuing high-priced free agents, the Chiefs have opted to stand pat and develop, teach, and implement with their own roster. The ‘22 draft is a masterclass in player selection, with four starters from that class: McDuffie, Karloftis, Watson, and Cook.
The Chiefs aren’t afraid of moving off veterans either. L’Jarius Sneed was traded away before the start of last season (Titans), and Justin Reid was allowed to walk at the end of this season (Saints). Reid will most likely be replaced by homegrown selection Jaden Hicks who played sparingly last season, but showed enough promise to allow the organization to see Reid out the door.
Andy Reid has built a culture around teaching and development, which the defense has fully embraced. The defense this year was not a juggernaut. In reality, the unit sits squarely in the middle class defensively. On offense, Reid has built an efficiency monster in Kansas City that runs on Mahomes’ processing skills and ability to create something out of thin air.
Defensively, the defense is the embodiment of a bend-don’t-break system. Kansas City was 13th in EPA/play overall, 17th against dropback passes, and 13th in EPA versus the run. The Chiefs force opponents to drive the ball and penalize them when they turn the ball over against the zone-centric defense.
Pundits focus on Spagnuolo’s pressures and exotic coverage rotations, but the truth is, those are a small part of how the Chiefs manufacture stops on defense. Last season, Kansas City was 16th in Middle of the Field Disguise (MOF Disguise) at 31%. This means the Chiefs rotated their coverage shell post-snap on less than a third of their snaps.
Kansas City is unique in the way it calls its coverages. Under Spags, the defense has been at the top of the charts regarding split-field coverage usage. In 2024, the Chiefs finished third in middle-of-the-field open (MOFO) coverages (49.2%). Quarters (or Palms) has always been a feature of the defense, and they finished second in the league last year in usage. They finished sixth in Cover 2 usage.
Spags is best known around the league for his Plams Pressures, or Tango package, which utilizes five-man pressures with Quarters behind them. Last season, the Chiefs had the eleventh highest Blitz Rate, at 28.4%, and the lowest stunt rate in the league, at ~9%. The use of pressure is a tool, but not the base of what makes the Chiefs’ defense uniquely good at stopping offenses.
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