Chiefs rebound strongly in preseason win over Cardinals
Tyler Brown
After getting off to a sluggish start last week, the Kansas City Chiefs got off to the exact opposite start this week against the Arizona Cardinals in week two of the preseason. This week, it was the Chiefs that began the game with a 17-0 lead. This helped spark a 38-10 victory over Arizona.
A start like that takes a strong effort from both the offense and the defense. Head coach Andy Reid stated to the media earlier this week that the starters would get the first half, but he liked enough of what he saw to pull most of them after three drives.
“Listen, it was a good effort all the way around,” Reid said. “Defensively, I thought we started fast, which we needed to do. Offensively, we had a few hiccups there early, penalties and that, so. We’ve got to take care of business with that. But I thought all in all, all of the groups came out and played good football—respectable football—and that’s what you try to get done in the second game.”
Patrick Mahomes and the offense stalled out the first two drives of the evening, but on the third one, they found the rhythm they were looking for. On that drive, Mahomes completed passes to six different receivers as they drove 92 yards for a Justin Watson touchdown in a little over four minutes. Mahomes finished the day 10 for 15 for 105 yards and a touchdown.
“I was telling the guys, if we don’t want to keep playing we better score,” Mahomes said. “Because coach Reid is going to keep us in this game until we score … A couple of the guys did a good job playing hard, playing fast. We’ll continue to get better and better and build for the first regular season game.”
Perhaps the most encouraging development of the evening was the emergence of the 2023 second-round pick, wide receiver Rashee Rice. Rice racked up 96 yards on eight catches across three different quarterbacks.
With some uncertainty in the wide receiver room, Rice being able to get acclimated quickly would be beneficial. Mahomes went as far as comparing his abilities to a former Super Bowl Champion wide receiver.
“He runs physical,” Mahomes said. “I say he has a lot of what Sammy (Watkins) had when he first got here. Being able to catch the ball, be physical but still have speed and everything like that. He’s going to be a great player for us, and we’re going to keep trying too push him and be getting better. Same with some of those other younger guys that we have.”
Interestingly enough, third-year quarterback Shane Buechele entered the game after Patrick Mahomes and before veteran Blaine Gabbert. There may or may not be something to make of that, but Buechele did not disappoint. He went a perfect 10 for 10 for 105 yards.
All of the first three quarterbacks dominated as Mahomes finished with a 109 quarterback rating, Buechele with a 110.4 and Gabbert with a perfect 158.3. They combined to go 27 for 33 for 330 yards and three touchdowns.
“Well this was a game that (Chiefs QB) Blaine (Gabbert) wasn’t scheduled to play,” Reid said. “Normally, the third guy goes, but both of them played great, and that’s a good thing that (they) both really played good football.”
One thing to look out for in the final preseason game is the fourth running back spot on the depth chart. Much of the offseason it has been assumed it would be Deneric Prince due to his ability to return kicks. This week Richie James was the deep man on the first kickoff and former fourth-round pick La’Mical Perine entered the game at tailback before Prince.
Perine showed off some skills going for 41 yards on six carries. Prince finished with 20 yards on six carries, but he did find the endzone late in the fourth quarter.
There was a lot of negative talk about the first-team defense last week after giving up a few quick scores against the Saints. This week they pitched a shutout while playing midway into the second quarter. Nick Bolton had a key pass defense on third down to close out the night for the starters.
Other standouts include wide receiver Ihmir Smtih-Marsette and linebacker Cole Christiansen. Smith-Marsette made the most of his four catches in the second half tallying 92 yards. Christiansen ended the night with eight tackles after also leading the team in tackles last week with seven.
The Chiefs close out the preseason with their lone home game against the Cleveland Browns next week on August 26 at 12 p.m. CDT. In last year's preseason week three game, Mahomes and many of the starters did not see the field. It may be wise to expect more of the same this year as they begin game planning for the Detroit Lions.
