Buccaneers: Is a heavy run game the way to beat the Chiefs?

Running the football may be the only way for the Buccaneers to slow down the Chiefs.

The Buccaneers are a little over a week away from playing in their first Super Bowl since 2003. The excitement in Tampa is reaching a frenzied pitch through fans that have been starved in the playoffs for the better part of two decades.

Tampa Bay defeated two of the best teams in the NFL on their way to the Super Bowl in the form of the Packers and the Saints, but a juggernaut still stands before the Bucs and their second-ever Lombardi Trophy.

For lack of a better word, the Kansas City Chiefs should be terrifying to the Buccaneers. Patrick Mahomes practically left scorch marks on the ground the last time he played in Tampa, and the Chiefs have only gotten better since then.

While the Buccaneers had to scratch and claw their way through two first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterbacks and one of the best defenses in the NFL to get where they are, the Chiefs dominated the AFC Championship game against the Bills and defeated the Browns with a backup quarterback during a crucial phase of the game.

This Chiefs team is one of the most dangerous ever with Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes at the helm, and the Buccaneers will have to get creative if they want to defeat Goliath.

Here at The Pewter Plank, we have championed the idea that the Buccaneers need to be a pass-first man defense team. However, doing so in the Super Bowl will lead to a lot of disappointed fans. The Bucs will have to transition away from their biggest successes of the season to win this game, and changing the outcome of this game starts with, trying not to puke, establishing the run.