The Kansas City Chiefs had firm control over the time of possession in this game, yet the defense played three more snaps to the offense. A lot of that seemed to come in late-game garbage time with backups in the game, while Kansas City was working to run out the clock.

What else can we learn from this week’s snap counts? Here’s a look at how the snaps played out in Week 16:

*Snap counts via NFL Game Statistics and Information System

Observations

• Only Andrew Wylie and Trey Smith played 100% of the team’s snaps on Sunday. It’s a bit surprising for Smith, who appeared hobbled at one point during the game.
• In the grand scheme of things, Patrick Mahomes only took six snaps off despite the blowout win. The offense didn’t really see much of the field during the fourth quarter of play.
• Byron Pringle saw the most offensive snaps of his career in Week 16, playing 80% of the Chiefs’ snaps. He was the leading snap-getter among receivers on Sunday and reaped the benefits, leading the team with 6 receptions, 75 yards receiving, and two touchdowns.
• Rookie TE Noah Gray saw the most snaps of his young career on Sunday. He was the primary beneficiary of Travis Kelce’s absence in terms of snap counts. He put up a solid performance against the Steelers, catching 2-of-2 passes for 12 yards.
• Blake Bell and Tyreek Hill, fresh off the Reserve/COVID-19 list, saw low snap counts on Sunday. They each player less than 50% of the offensive snaps for Kansas City, which is still pretty good, considering they missed most of the week of practice.
• Derrick Gore played just 19 snaps on offense on Sunday, but he led the Chiefs in yards from scrimmage. Just another sign that he’s deserving of more snaps.
• Charvarius Ward played the most snaps of any player who was recently activated from the Reserve/COVID-19 list, appearing in 62% of the defensive snaps. He had one of the better performances of his 2021 campaign too.
• The Chiefs rotated their defensive line quite frequently in this game, with Tershawn Wharton, Mike Danna and Alex Okafor leading the way in snaps for that unit. Keeping Melvin Ingram, Frank Clark and Chris Jones fresh for the stretch run and into the playoffs should pay off nicely for Kansas City.
• Without Nick Bolton this week and during the blowout win, the Chiefs used Ben Niemann more frequently than any other linebacker. When Bolton returns, the rotation at that position should look a bit more normal.
• Dorian O’Daniel finally saw some action on defense during the blowout win and he didn’t disappoint. He had a big collision with a Steelers running back that drew an audible gasp from the crowd at Arrowhead Stadium. Hopefully, this signals some more opportunities for him.
• Rookie CB Dicaprio Bootle played 22 snaps on defense and five snaps on special teams. He finished the game as the Chiefs’ leading tackler with eight combined tackles.
• Rookie DB Zayne Anderson was the lone non-specialist to just play special teams snaps. He was one of three players to finish the night with a tackle on special teams.
• Replacement kicker Elliott Fry played in 16 snaps while punter Johnny Townsend played in just 10 snaps. They weren’t perfect, but they were good enough in the absence of Tommy Townsend and Harrison Butker.