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One of the keys to offensive success for the Kansas City Chiefs is utilizing their best skill players. Sounds like a no-brainer, but the Chiefs in the first two games hadn't been giving the most work to their best receivers and running backs. That was particularly true for the season-opening loss to the Tennessee Titans.  The Chiefs distributed their snaps wisely in Sunday's 34-15 win against the Dolphins in Miami. Their top five skill players (other than quarterback Alex Smith) in terms of play counts were tight end Anthony Fasano (all 72 plays), wide receiver Dwayne Bowe (55), running back Knile Davis (53), tight end Travis Kelce (47) and wide receiver Donnie Avery (41).
Other than perhaps running back Joe McKnight, who caught six passes and scored two touchdowns on just 15 plays against the Dolphins, those are probably the top five playmakers the Chiefs had available to them Sunday. Kelce's snaps as a percentage of the total offensive plays were way up. He hadn't played more than 37 percent of the snaps in either of the first two games. Wide receiver Junior Hemingway, in for 27 snaps, played less than he had in either of the first two games. The Chiefs also got more work to tight end Demetrius Harris (13 snaps) than he had seen in the first two games combined. So nice work by the Chiefs' coaches (finally) to get their best players into the lineup. That excludes McKnight, of course, but the Chiefs probably maximized his production for one day, anyway. At least until Jamaal Charles returns, it's reasonable to expect McKnight's playing time will increase, particularly if the Chiefs are doing a lot of passing. A couple of thoughts about snap counts in Miami from a defensive standpoint: -- Dee Ford was in for 13 snaps, more than he played in the first two games combined. -- Allen Bailey was in for more snaps (56) than any other defensive linemen, including Dontari Poe (53). That's two straight weeks for Bailey as the playing time champ of the defensive line.
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