Anatomy of a Super Bowl Berth: Why the Chiefs’ defense has a need for (L’Jarius) Sneed

“With Sneed, there are so many times that you see it, whether it’s on his 2018 tape when he gets a good jam in and works right around to the catch point on a slant or on his 2019 tape when he flips his hips and skies for a pick on a full sprint. There is high-level NFL talent with Sneed, but whether it’s because he could get away with it at his competition level or because he never quite mastered either position, we don’t see it regularly. Too often he gets lazy with his technique and resorts to playing catch up. The good news is that he has all the traits to catch up and can do so in a hurry. Maybe NFL coaching will unlock the secret.”

That’s what Pro Football Focus’ Mike Renner wrote about Louisiana Tech defensive back L’Jarius Sneed, who switched to “safety” after three years as an outside cornerback, in PFF’s 2020 Draft Guide. In 2019, Sneed played 354 snaps at free safety, 348 snaps at slot defender, 138 snaps in the box, nine snaps at outside cornerback, and seven snaps on the defensive line. No matter where he lined up, Sneed allowed a passer rating of 45.2, giving up 22 receptions on 46 targets with three interceptions.

After a scouting combine in which he finished in the 93th percentile or higher in the 40-yard dash (4.37 seconds), the broad jump (131 inches), and the vertical jump (41 inches), Sneed had to wait until the 138th overall pick in the fourth round to find his NFL home. That his NFL home is in Kansas City turned out to be the ideal scenario.

“L’Jarius Sneed, I was very impressed with his tape with regards to all of the things that he did,” Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo said of his rookie back in May. “He played corner and he’s a big corner, he played some nickel, he covered the slot receivers and they actually played him at safety. I thought he did really good at all of them. We see him as a corner right now and we’ll see where that progresses to. I think anybody that can come in with that kind of flexibility is a good thing.”

The progression didn’t take long. In his rookie season, which was capped at nine games and six starts in the regular season due to injury (Weeks 4-10), Sneed played well as multiple positions as an aggressive defender — two things required of any player in Spagnuolo’s defense, especially in Spagnuolo’s secondary.

Sneed started his rookie season filling in for suspended cornerback Bashaud Breeland, and it took no time at all for him to stand out.

Unfortunately, a broken clavicle cost Sneed the next seven games, but he returned in Week 11 ready to roll with different responsibilities. He played outside cornerback on 138 snaps in his first three games, per Pro Football Focus, and 26 snaps thereafter. Before his injury, Sneed played six snaps in the slot, and 195 since his return. Either way, no problem. This season, Sneed has allowed 32 catches on 50 targets for 252 yards, 132 yards, one touchdown, three interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 58.1 — by far the best among rookie cornerbacks who played at least 20% of their teams’ defensive snaps. Darnay Holmes of the Giants finished second in opponent passer rating at 91.2.

“Both his position coaches and then Spags [Spagnuolo] and [general manager] Brett [Veach] were real high on him, so we kind of did the waiting game,” head coach Andy Reid said of Sneed on December 21. “Brett did what he does —I mean, he’s got a real knack for knowing where and when guys are potentially going to be picked, so we waited a little bit there and it worked out for us.

“But the guys, everybody saw this talent in the kid and thought that he could work in. Now, what we didn’t think was that he would be playing nickel for us. That’s a tough spot, that’s way different than the corner spot. So, when he came back from the injury, we moved him back into the inside position and there’s a whole lot of learning going on there, and what you’re seeing now is him getting the hang of this and things are picking up again for him. He did a nice job when 21 [Breeland] was out for those couple games there that he stepped in and did a good job at corner. But again, this whole nickel thing, that’s a different animal, so he’s been in there and he’s just kind of getting the feel. I mean, again, we’re all witnessing it right here in front of us, but he did a nice job yesterday.”

On/Off reports are always tricky to extrapolate because football is a team game, but there’s little question that Kansas City’s secondary is better when Sneed is a part of it. Per Sports Info Solutions, he’s been on the field for 240 of Kansas City’s defensive snaps against the pass, and off the field for 368. When he’s on the field, the Chiefs allow a completion rate of 65.5, as opposed to 60.6% when he’s part of the defense. That’s not just on Sneed — his return and adaptation to slot defender allowed Tyrann Mathieu to play far more free safety and moveable chess piece, which is always a good thing.

Sneed’s ball skills from the slot were readily apparent in this Week 15 interception of Drew Brees — this is the “nice job” Reid was talking about. Watch how Sneed (No. 38) forces receiver Lil’Jordan Humphrey to fight for an opening right off the line of scrimmage, and how he jumps the route when the ball is coming. This ball is more Sneed’s than Humphrey’s from the start.

Sneed has also become a great blitzer in Kansas City’s sub-packages. He’s able to show coverage and bring pressure with a smoothness you don’t expect from a rookie. Ask Baker Mayfield about that from the Chiefs’ divisional round win over the Browns. Mayfield is reading the middle of the field, expects Sneed to carry tight Austin Hooper, and he never sees Sneed coming until the play is over.

Sneed has a sack in each of his last three games — Week 15 against the Saints, Week 16 against the Falcons, and that one.

Sneed was out for the Chiefs’ 26-17 Week 6 win over the Bills, but you can be sure that Josh Allen will watching for Sneed when the AFC Championship game kicks off this Sunday.

L’Jarius Sneed’s days under the radar are officially over.