Before we fully dive into the 2024 offseason, Next Gen Stats analytics expert John Andersen takes an in-depth look at a definitive aspect of the 2023 campaign.
The San Francisco 49ers were in position to strike first in overtime of Super Bowl LVIII, facing third-and-4 from Kansas City's 9-yard line. That's when Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo blitzed quarterback Brock Purdy for the 22nd and final time that Sunday, capping off a performance in which K.C. blitzed on a season-high 52.4 percent of dropbacks. Chiefs All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones went unblocked on the play, logging his team-high sixth pressure of the game and causing Purdy to throw an errant pass over the head of an open Jauan Jennings. The 49ers were forced to kick a field goal, setting the stage for what would be the game-winning touchdown drive orchestrated by Patrick Mahomes en route to the team's third Lombardi Trophy -- and his third Super Bowl MVP -- in five seasons.
Jones' unblocked pressure was the Chiefs' ninth of the game, two more than they had previously generated in any single contest during the season, with all occurring on blitzes. It was the culmination of a season-long theme of schemed pressure at the hands of the wizardly Spagnuolo, whose young unit generated 73 unblocked pressures and an 11.3 percent unblocked pressure rate during the regular season (both top marks league-wide). Cornerback Trent McDuffie, who led the NFL with 11 unblocked pressures from a slot alignment during the regular season, generated two such pressures on Super Bowl Sunday.
While it may be true that there is no single aspect of football that determines the outcome of a game or season, a team's ability to pass or disrupt the pass are tantamount in
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