{"id":78440,"date":"2025-07-12T07:53:24","date_gmt":"2025-07-12T07:53:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=78440"},"modified":"2025-07-12T07:53:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-12T07:53:37","slug":"underappreciated-chiefs-figure-called-backbone-of-kc-super-bowl-runs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=78440","title":{"rendered":"Underappreciated Chiefs Figure Called &#8216;Backbone&#8217; of KC Super Bowl Runs"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Andy-Reid-Steve-Spagnuolo-e1752290908109.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Andy-Reid-Steve-Spagnuolo-e1752290908109.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Andy-Reid-Steve-Spagnuolo-e1752290908109.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Andy-Reid-Steve-Spagnuolo-e1752290908109.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Underappreciated Chiefs Figure Called 'Backbone' of KC Super Bowl Runs\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>Getty<\/p>\n<p>Kansas City Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo earned some well-deserved recognition ahead of 2025 training camp.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>When NFL fans talk about the Kansas City Chiefs\u2019 recent reign of terror, they usually talk about quarterback Patrick Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid, or even defensive lineman Chris Jones or superstar tight end Travis Kelce. Long-time defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is rarely front and center during moments of praise, but that could be changing ahead of the 2025 season.<\/p>\n<p>Within a document shared with Heavy, Pro Football Network ranked Spagnuolo as the second-best defensive coordinator for the entire NFL. He was also ranked No. 1 for all AFC D-coordinators.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSteve Spagnuolo has quietly been the backbone of the Kansas City Chiefs\u2019 dynasty,\u201d the analysts at Pro Football Network wrote. \u201cSince taking over as defensive coordinator in 2019, he\u2019s helped guide the team to five Super Bowl appearances and three championships in just six seasons.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Continuing: \u201cThe Chiefs have placed 14th in Defense+ in consecutive seasons, preventing them from staying at No. 1, like they were for us last year. That said, his philosophy of generating pressure with blitzes and exotic rush packages works. Kansas City has been inside the top five in fewest points per game allowed in consecutive years.\u201d<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Chiefs Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo Doesn\u2019t Get Enough Credit<\/h2>\n<p>When Spagnuolo first took the DC job in KC, he was often public enemy number one. In all fairness to the fans, it did take \u201cSpags\u201d a few years to implement his system and work with the front office to bring in the right players, but once things started to click, the defensive turnaround was not far behind.<\/p>\n<p>In recent seasons, most Chiefs supporters would probably acknowledge that Spagnuolo\u2019s unit has carried the team more often than not. With players like Jones, Trent McDuffie, George Karlaftis, and Nick Bolton (among others) developing into irreplaceable cogs of this perennial championship contender.<\/p>\n<p>And as Pro Football Network noted, the results speak for themselves.<\/p>\n<p>Heading into the 2025 training camp, the Chiefs appear to be more balanced than they\u2019ve been in a while. The defense, headed by Spagnuolo, Jones, McDuffie, Bolton and Karlaftis, hasn\u2019t lost too many key pieces outside of Justin Reid and Tershawn Wharton \u2014 and both were replaced by recent draft picks.<\/p>\n<p>On the opposite side of the football, the offense still has questions on the offensive line, but Mahomes\u2019 complement of skill position players is fully healthy and quite possibly the deepest it\u2019s been since the Tyreek Hill trade.<\/p>\n<p>Kansas City always has a difficult schedule and challenging path back to the Super Bowl, but this could be their most well-rounded roster in years. And with Reid and Spagnuolo at the helm, who\u2019s to say they won\u2019t be hoisting another Lombardi Trophy in February?<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<h2>Eagles DC Vic Fangio Lands No. 1 Defensive Coordinator Ranking Over Spags<\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re wondering who ranked No. 1 in Pro Football Network\u2019s defensive coordinator rankings, it was Philadelphia Eagles DC Vic Fangio. Based on the Super Bowl alone, it\u2019s hard to argue with this assertion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe turnaround that Vic Fangio spearheaded as defensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles last season was remarkable,\u201d PFSN reasoned. \u201cAfter finishing 30th in PFSN\u2019s Defense+ metric in 2023, Fangio turned them around to the second-best ranking in 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Eagles finished second with just 17.8 points per game allowed last year, dominating with the second-lowest blitz rate in the league,\u201d the NFL site went on. \u201cTheir talented defensive line is complemented by a strong secondary, which Fangio effectively utilizes through disguised coverages. He\u2019s a defensive mastermind who played a massive role in their Super Bowl victory.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Like Spagnuolo, Fangio has a proven track record with a long history of success in this league. Similar to the Chiefs, the Eagles\u2019 offense gets a lot of the credit for their Super Bowl victory last winter, but in all honesty, it was the defense that led the way on the biggest of stages.<\/p>\n<p>Michael Obermuller covers the NFL for Heavy Sports, where he began writing in 2021. His areas of focus include the Kansas City Chiefs, New York Giants, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Pittsburgh Steelers, with expert knowledge on each based on years of coverage. Michael is an NYC area native and Quinnipiac graduate. More about Michael Obermuller<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>An NFL site identified the &#8220;backbone&#8221; of the Kansas City Chiefs&#8217; recent Super Bowl runs, and it&#8217;s defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":78441,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78440","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Underappreciated Chiefs Figure Called &#039;Backbone&#039; of KC Super Bowl Runs - News 365<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/new365.azontree.com\/?p=78440\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Underappreciated Chiefs Figure Called &#039;Backbone&#039; 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