It goes without saying how well our defense has stood up the last month. I really hope we can keep a core group of them for at least a couple seasons. But ultimately the only difference between this squad and the past many teams is that the defense is so tough.

Offensively we’re still finding our way, particularly but not solely because of our rookie QB. The offense today still shows at or near the start of the game, disappears for 2-2 1/2 quarters, then makes a late-game appearance or two the same as it did most games under Carr. And it still seems disjointed and lost as if there’s no underlying offensive philosophy.

A lot of this was because of our past penalty fetish, which flared up Sunday, and our general lack of successes on first down. But it’s consistent through personnel and coaching changes so probably the only fix is “have more success on first down.” So yeah, guys, start doing that…

Anyway, Sunday was a chance at a big upset. It didn’t happen due to penalties and offensive inertia (KC has 11 three-and-outs this year, we had six in a row on Sunday). But nothing overall has changed. This is the same 7-10 to 10-7 team that started the season and they’ve improve by subtraction and maybe around the edges. For instance, it’d be helpful if Jones can assume the tackling duties Peters nopes out of. But having a locker room that players want to be in is a great foundation to build upon… if we can keep it.