Mahomes, Reid, Others Quotes: Sept. 7

Mahomes, Reid, Others Quotes: Sept. 7

Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid Quotes

September 7, 2022

OPENING STATEMENT: “Good. All the PR (people) did that in the National Football League, right Ted (Crews)? It’s a great thing. Okay, injuries, everybody will practice today, so we’re good there. If anybody was going to ask about Britt’s (Reid) situation, it’s best that I just leave that in the lawyers’ hands, so I’m not going go talk about that. I will talk about Arizona. We look forward to the challenge of playing them. We, again, know they’re a good football team. They started off undefeated for the first seven games I believe last year. So, they start fast and they’ve got a heck of an offense and a defense, good coaches, their special teams are rock solid. We’ve got to make sure we prepare. Early in the season there’s not a whole lot of scouting reports on them other than the year before and a little bit of what you show in the preseason games. So, you really got to stay disciplined with what you do and execute on both sides of the ball and special teams. With that, time’s yours.”

Q: Is there an excitement to get the season underway?

REID: “Well, I am. We’re coming off a week here where we just practiced, so you look forward to getting started. We’ve got a good opponent to do that against which (makes) it even better. It’s a great challenge. And then, we’re playing at their place where it’s loud. So you got to – at the same time when you’re jumping out of your shoes, you’ve got to make sure you calm the storm where you can execute at the best of your abilities. You can get high, but not too high. You get too high and you start doing things that aren’t the right things.”

Q: What is your biggest challenge this week? What players do you think will be a challenge?

REID: “Well they’ve got a good stable of wide receivers there and good runners, good tight ends. They drafted one this year that’s a heck of a player. They’ve got good football players and they’re solid up front. Defensively, J.J. (Watt) is healthy. So you add him into the mix with 44 (Markus Golden) who’s dynamite, 9 (Isaiah Simmons), you can go through the (roster), Budda Baker. I feel like he’s been doing this forever and he’s still flying around like a wild man, 25 (Zaven Collins). They’re fully loaded in that defensive side. So, (we have) got to make sure that (on) both sides of the ball we execute. It’ll be very important.”

Q: On Kyler Murray and problems he can pose to a defense.

REID: “Yeah, well, he’s smart. He knows how to execute that offense. And then you add on the physical part of it where he’s tremendously quick and at the same time, he’s got that arm that is potent. He can put it anywhere, anytime. He’s a good football player.”

Q: On what Cardinals Head Coach Kliff Kingsbury might have conveyed to him when the Chiefs were looking to draft Patrick Mahomes.

REID: “Well obviously they’re close. Kliff is a tremendous guy, and I think he’s a heck of a football coach. Arizona is lucky to have him in that capacity there. He does a great job with the offensive side of the football. He loved Patrick (Mahomes). He thought he’d be a great professional football player even though maybe the offense was different. But you’re seeing his offense now be very, very successful. You’re seeing Patrick also be very successful. But at that time, it was kind of new to the NFL and all coaches thought, ‘this big change.’ You really didn’t need that.”

Q: Did Kliff Kingsbury’s input on drafting Patrick Mahomes help?

REID: “Well, no, absolutely. He was great with it, yeah. And I respect his input, so it was one of the reasons we went out for Patrick as hard as we did.”

Q: On what Kliff Kingsbury told him that made the Chiefs go hard for Mahomes.

REID: “He told me he’s good (laughs). He told me he could answer all (of) Adam’s (Teicher) questions.”

Q: How does being 8-1 in openers and 5-0 in away openers happen?

REID: “Hey, listen, I don’t know. I wish we wouldn’t have had the one in there (laughter). That’s the deal. I don’t know that (answer). Right now – I appreciate the question – but I don’t care about that right now. If we can just go execute, do the best we can for this time of the year, I’ll be happy it.”

Q: What was the expectation for the offensive line last year? What are the expectations for them this year?

REID: “Yeah, so, they’re a full season into playing together. Back then it was new communication, we were learning it. That group, as you know, has to be dancing the same dance at all times. If one of them’s out of whack then there’s a problem. But they worked through all of that stuff and I thought did a nice job throughout the season growing together. Now they’re all back and have another chance to go at it. This will be a good challenge for us right there.”

Q: Is there anything you can take from that experience last year and somewhat translate it over to a new wide receiver group, minus Mecole Hardman?

REID: “A little different spread out. You still have to work together but you’re in space doing it. Those guys are right there man, that’s a different world. None of us are born with a three-point stance and all of that. Of course, we’re not born running either (laughter) but we get there.”

Q: You work all offseason to get ready with these new guys but this is your first time going into a real game and not having Tyreek Hill on your roster in a while. Is there some mystery to it? What’s the feeling going into a regular season game with this team?

REID: “Yeah listen, we do have new bodies in there. Most of these guys have played. And the new kids I think they’re feeding off the old guys. On the other side of that, we’re all pulling for Tyreek (Hill) to have a great year, too. These guys have done a nice job of working with Pat (Patrick Mahomes). They’ve spent a lot of time in the offseason with him and they have played in games. That would be the one positive on that.”

Q: Are you excited to see a full game though? You just get to see bits and pieces during the preseason.

REID: “Yeah sure. Absolutely, absolutely. I look forward to seeing everybody, right? (I’m excited to see) everybody to play together for a full game. You just get a taste of it during preseason. There are things that go on with the wide receiver because you’ve got a lot of moving parts in there or guys subbing in and subbing out and doing that for four quarters is again, that’s a good challenge.”

Q: Following up on that, looking up at where all you have been the last four seasons, you’re going to start the season where you hope to end (Arizona), what is your message to all your players who may not have been in this position before?

REID: “Well, we talk all the way through about just the speed of the game so every phase that we’ve had in the offseason is a little bit faster than the phase before. And then that is the same thing with the preseason games as opposed to a regular season game. I mean this is going to be fast, this is going to be loud. You’ve got to be able to block things out and focus and you’ve got to be able to do it for four quarters. The experience will help them, but as far as they can prepare, they’ve worked on that.”

Q: This is a new experience for Mahomes, new personnel. As you look at the past eight months since the AFC Championship game how have you seen Mahomes ensure that this operation isn’t going to slow down?

REID: “Well when we lost receivers that we lost, he was excited first of all to get the new guys in. Who’s he going to have here? Then to take it and run for it once we signed them and literally take them to where he lives and get going.  Again, we wish all those guys the best. I think our whole team would tell you that have played with the guys that we’ve had here, (that) they’re tremendous and we’re hoping for the best in their new places. He was very excited to get them in and get them going and that’s what he did.”

Q: Do you sense that the season opener is more of an educational game than any of the others? Is it a mystery even for yourself of where the team is, or do you feel like you have a pretty good idea of where you’re at?

REID: “Listen I’ll tell you; you have an idea but you don’t know. I mean you don’t know till you get in there and go. Every week tells you kind of a new story and you’re either going to continue to progress, where do you plateau if you plateau, and you take some dips there. How do you handle those? So that’s what seasons present you and you’ve got to work through all that and if you haven’t gone through it with some guys or the chemistry of all the guys together working, how’s that going to take? Well, we’ll see. That’s what’s so unique about it. Every year is a little bit different on how they go about it and you’re excited for that part to see how it all unfolds.”

Q: How do you manage with so many young guys and the lack of experience, there are going to be some mistakes that will be made but they’ll also be out there making big plays potentially, how do you manage that?

REID: “We’re here to teach as coaches and we know even with veteran players there are mistakes. The thing is that you learn from it as a player, and as a coach, you teach and help them not make that same mistake again. You want them to play full speed, you want them to go. If you’re going to make a mistake, do it a hundred miles an hour and then let’s learn from it and get back in and go a hundred miles an hour the next play.”

Q: On the sophomore year of playing being more challenging than the rookie year.

REID: “Yeah so what happens is you give these coaches, these great minds on the defensive side time to study you and find out what your weakness is and then they’re going to come out and they’re going to attack that. You only have a few games to get where you want to go so it’s different than baseball or basketball. So, these guys get together and they’re going to come out and present. You’re going to rise, you’re going to sink. You’ve got to be strong mentally and prepare yourself for it.”

Q: Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and Offensive Coordinator Coach Eric Bieniemy both said in the preseason how much you’ve evolved as a coach. Going into this season how much with that evolution of yourself does identity of improving yourself take on your team?

REID: “Yeah, I’m old is what they’re saying, or I’ve put weight on (laughter). It’s one of the two. I don’t know. I don’t know, you can ask them. Listen, I love what I’m doing. Those guys, I rely on them a lot and the other coaches. They do a great job. I mean EB’s been with me since he was a player and I was a coach. I want to kick him (Eric Bieniemy) out of here and get him where needs to be as a head coach. But at the same time there is a familiarity there. And really with that staff. Defensively I’ve known (Steve Spagnuolo) Spags since we’ve coached in college and you know there’s a trust there and all those guys, Spags and his staff.” 

Chiefs Players Quotes

September 7, 2022

QB PATRICK MAHOMES

Q: The season is just about to get started for real, how excited are you with this group, that you have gone to battle with in training camp, to see what they can do?

MAHOMES: “Yeah, super excited. The biggest thing I think is just getting those guys out there. We’ve put in the practice now; we’ve put in the work. One more week of kind of game planning (and) getting ready for the (Arizona) Cardinals, a great football team. But I’m excited to see these guys in game action. Preseason is one thing, but once it gets to the regular season it gets real, so I’m excited to get these guys out there and see what we got.”

Q: On how the outside chatter motivates him this season.

MAHOMES: “I think you should be motivated every year. In this league, everybody starts at zero. Everybody is 0-0, everybody has a chance to go out there and win the Super Bowl. If you don’t have that motivation every single year to win the AFC West, to win the AFC and then to win the Super Bowl, you’re in the wrong profession. And I think that we have the guys in here that are excited about it. Excited about the chance to go out there and win every single week, but it all starts off this Week One against a great football team, in the Arizona Cardinals. So we’re excited to get out there and kind of show what we’ve been putting together (and) show who we are.”

Q: Cardinals Head Coach Kliff Kingsbury said it’s going to be surreal to face you. What do you think it’s going to be like to face him?

MAHOMES: “Yeah, same. It’s someone who taught me a ton, not only about football but about life. He got me kind of out of high school where I was a baseball player, trying to play football and basically trying to be on my own. You’re leaving the household and kind of being on your own and he helped me become who I am today, and it’ll be cool to play against him. Hopefully, I get the win because you’ll have those little ‘bragging rights’, you know, because I see him every once in a while, in the offseason, out in Lubbock and stuff like that so it’s definitely going to be an awesome moment that we’ll have forever. Just hopefully, I get the win, so I can have those bragging rights for the rest of time.”

Q: How much do you stay in touch with him (Cardinals Head Coach Kliff Kingsbury)?

MAHOMES: “I stay in touch with him a good amount. I mean, we talk about Texas Tech football. One of our guys, Zach Kittley, the offensive coordinator who was with us there at Texas Tech. We kind of keep in touch through all kinds of group messages with all those guys and so it’ll be cool to go against him and it won’t be a lot of communication this week, I know that. So we’re going to go out there and I know he’s going to have his team ready to go. He has a track record to where they start off fast and they do a lot of great things, so we’re going to have to have our best effort if we want to go out there and win a football game.”

Q: When Texas Tech first started recruiting you, was that your junior year? Were they the first on board?

MAHOMES: “They were really the first and only because I didn’t really get recruited by much. I mean, I got a couple other offers from some smaller schools and stuff like that in the Texas area. But, they were the one school and I credit Kingsbury, he’s the one that came down and saw me, talked to me, talked to my family and everything like that and believed in me. I think that’s a reason that I’m in this position, (because) he gave me that chance.”

Q: Didn’t the University of Texas see you as a defensive back?

MAHOMES: “Yeah, but I was playing defensive back at that time in their defense. I said it, man, I was like 6’2, 180 (pounds) and had like six picks so I mean maybe I could’ve played defensive back, you never know.”

Q: What advice did Kingsbury have for you when you were deciding to leave or to go back to Texas Tech?

MAHOMES: “I think the biggest piece of advice he gave me was to be ‘all in’ either way. If that was coming back to Texas Tech and trying to do whatever I can to win the Big 12 championship to make my draft grade go higher and do all that different type of stuff, he said do that. But, if I do make that step and go to the NFL, (to) just give it everything that I have. I mean, that’s kind of what I got from a lot of people around me. It all worked out because I was projected (as) a second or third round pick and I went in there (and) did everything I could in the combine training. Then I got to the Chiefs and kind of kept that same mentality and it kind of helped me become the player that I am.”

Q: Are there things that you can point to and say, “this is how he helped me?”

MAHOMES: “Yeah, I think the biggest thing, you see it a lot with these young quarterbacks, is whenever they get to a coach, they kind of just restrict them and kind of make them be this model of how the quarterback position is supposed to be played. And I think he was early in the game of just saying, ‘hey, let’s maximize your strengths.’ And he would teach me here and there about how to be more mechanical in the pocket and the fundamentals of the game, but he never restricted who I was. And I think that’s kind of obviously amplified with (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid now. But it’s something to where I could’ve went somewhere and they could’ve tried to make me this pocket quarterback and who kind of had the right fundamentals but he let me be who I was on and off the field and it helped me become the player that I am.”

Q: Does he know how to stop you then?

MAHOMES: “I hope not. I haven’t played against him yet (laughter). I haven’t played against him yet but I’m sure he has a few more tricks that he might know from my college days, but I feel like I’ve grown a lot since I’ve been in the NFL. So, hopefully we can combat that but I’m sure he has a good idea of who I am but it’s a hard offense to stop all together and I think that’s what makes this offense so great.”

Q: What’s the motivating factor that you told all the new additions to the team to try and complete what you couldn’t do last year?

MAHOMES: “Yeah, I think it’s just keeping the edge. Keeping the edge of just going out there every single day and getting better. We have a lot of new guys, but we have some guys that we’ve had for a long time, and you don’t want to get complacent with where you’re at, you want to make sure you’re getting better and better. And we have to set that example and keep that edge so that the guys that have came in here, they understand that, and they know how to get better. And so, we can start off this Week 1 and hopefully get a win but keep building as this season goes on.”

Q: How surprised do you think people will be when they see this first glimpse of your offense with the new personnel?

MAHOMES: “I think the biggest thing is just going to be that it’s going to be a different player every week that has the ‘big game.’ It’s not going to be just necessarily Tyreek (Hill) and Travis (Kelce) every single week, where it’s like one or the other is having a big game, or both. It’s going to be every single week; it’s going to be someone different. So, I’m sorry to all you fantasy football guys but it’s going to come from everywhere so you’re going to have to kind of choose the right guy every week.”

Q: Do you feel like you need a regular season game to learn more about the new guys?

MAHOMES: “You see those guys who really want to compete. I think that’s the biggest thing. You see what a guy really has underneath, because when you’re in the preseason or when you’re in training camp, you’re grinding and you’re doing all that different stuff and you’re going through adversity. But, at the same time, you kind of know that it’s not real. When it becomes real, you see what a guy truly has underneath, and I believe that we have the guys that have it and can go out there and find a way to win at the end of the day.”

Q: What all have you seen that makes you say that?

MAHOMES: “You see from the moments. Whenever (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid puts us in these ‘game’ situations, and you see guys step up. Whenever the play is not perfect, whenever you have to make plays happen, you’ve seen guys make those tough catches, you’ve seen guys make those contested catches. And then you learn about their personalities and where they’ve come from and you understand that these guys, they have that grit (and) they have that toughness to go out there and win football games, however it takes.”

Q: Do you and Kyler Murray run into each other down in Dallas?

MAHOMES: “We don’t run into each other much, but I definitely know him. I’ve met him a couple times. I mean, I’ve seen him since he was a sophomore or freshman in high school, dominating the Dallas, DFW area, really all of Texas and the country. He’s a winner. He’s someone who has won everywhere he’s been, he’s extremely talented. It would be a tough test for any defense. For us, we’re going to have to go up there and compete if we want to win this football game.”

Q: Is there a similar feeling to the 2018 season opener because of the new skillset of receivers and does that give you an advantage?

MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean I’m extremely excited just to get out here. Like I said, I think it’s just going to be welled-up, diverse offense where everyone’s going to get the ball so it will be hard for defenses to game plan against, but I’m interested to see how defenses are going to go against us. Are they going to do the shell stuff that we saw most of the year, are they going to do what the (Cincinnati) Bengals did to us at the AFC Championship game or are they going to go back to going with defenses they feel the most confident with? So I’m excited for that but we have answers for it all and we’re excited just to get out there and play.”

Q: Is it noticeable when a receiver is coming from a previous team with a great quarterback such as Arron Rodgers or Tom Brady opposed to a different wide receiver?

MAHOMES: “I think the biggest thing coming from quarterbacks like that, especially the ones that played a long time and been great for a long time, is they understand how to do stuff the way the quarterback wants it done. I mean not necessary how its drawn up on paper. All three of those guys whenever you tell them something they make sure to make that adjustment in their routes (because) they know that’s kind of what they dealt with their entire career. Sometimes when you get guys from other places, they just run the route how it’s supposed to be ran but these guys have a great understanding of not only running the route but understanding the coverage as they’re running it and how it affects everybody.”

Q: What do you expect to see from the Cardinals defense?

MAHOMES: “I mean, the Cardinals are going to do a little bit of everything. If you watched the film on them and seen them all last year with (Cardinals Defensive Coordinator) Vance Joseph, someone who I played a couple times when he was at Denver, he’s going to throw you every single pitch. He does a great job of mixing up his coverages, mixing up his blitz pressures and we’re not going to be correct 100% of the time. He’s going to have different coverages that get me during the game. It’s about limiting the mistakes in that game and then whenever you do get the opportunities, executing on it.”

Q: Rate your Fortnite skin.

MAHOMES: “Dude, I think it’s sweet, both of them. The gladiator one, that thing was sweet where it has the bazooka arm, whatever you want to call it and then the pickaxe and everything like that. I helped design that one, so it was big, and they want to throw a fun one out here so the ketchup bottle obviously I think was fun. I think I still look pretty clean with the suit on.”

Q: Do you play Fortnite a lot?

MAHOMES: “I haven’t played with my skin just yet just because I’m in the middle of the season, but I’m hoping to get out there and play it a little bit and catch some dubs.”

Q: On sending Kingsbury the eyes emoji after seeing the schedule.

MAHOMES: “Yeah, I did because (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid’s got the people inside the building everywhere. He knew the schedule before it even came out, so I sent him the emoji and I think he knew right then that it was going to be the Week 1 against each other but that’s just the type of relationship we have man. He’s a great guy and like I said it’s a great football team, so it’s going to be a great test for us early.”

WR JUJU SMITH-SCHUSTER

Q: What’s going through your mind and how are you feeling about Week 1?

SMITH-SCHUSTER: “I’m excited. It’s been a while since I’ve stepped onto the field. I should be fully healthy going into this game. I’m just happy to play with this team, happy to play with these guys. Like I said, just all excited, all positive vibes.”

Q: What was going on with your knee in the preseason and how is it feeling?

SMITH-SCHUSTER: “(My) knee’s great. Just a couple minor issues. I’ve been playing this game for six years. I’m not the young JuJu (Smith-Schuester) you know anymore. I’m getting older. I’m more of an adult, and it takes time. It’s fully healed, and I just can’t wait to play.”

Q: On advice to the young wide receiver group.

SMITH-SCHUSTER: “Yeah, I mean (the) majority of guys in that room, they’ve been on big stages before. You got MVS (Marquez Valdes-Scantling) coming from the Packers where he’s played on big stages. You got Mecole (Hardman) who’s already been on big stages. Obviously, me coming from where I came from (Pittsburgh Steelers), we all played on big stages, so the first game, like I said, people have butterflies, people have that nervousness but that’s normal for humans. At the end of the day, I just think it’s great for all of us to go out there and just show what we’re here to do.”

Q: What do you need to prove this year?

SMITH-SCHUSTER: “Honestly, just (that) I still got it. I think last year was kind of like the toll where ‘Hey, I kind of fell off,’ obviously injuries and stuff like that happens. It’s the name of the game, it happens. At the end of the day, I came here for a reason. I came here to win. I came here to win a Super Bowl. I think it was the best fit for me. The coaches, my teammates, the staff, everyone around, and obviously you guys. You guys made me a better person, a better player so that’s what I came here to do, win a Super Bowl.”

DT CHRIS JONES

Q: What has Defensive Line Coach Joe Cullen’s impact been on the defensive line as a whole?

JONES: “As a whole, I think Joe Cullen has got another sense of urgency out of the D-line. We were able to bring in a few more guys to add to the depth. Carlos Dunlap and another few younger guys that we drafted, our first rounder, George Karlaftis. I think his (Joe Cullen) demeanor, it’s like a domino effect on all of us, his sense of urgency. And I think we’ll continue to build, continue to lay that foundation throughout and make sure to show up on game day.”

Q: On the additions of Carlos Dunlap and George Karlaftis, and Frank Clark coming back in better shape helping get to the quarterback.

JONES: “I think it will help the defense tremendously. Carlos is a proven guy in this league. George Karlaftis, you turn on his college tape, he has a motor like no other. And Frank Clark, look at his playoff record, I mean it speaks for itself so having all those guys here healthy, I think it’s imperative for our defensive line.”

Q: When you look back at your first regular season game as an NFL player, any of that have you been able to share with rookie George Karlaftis?

JONES: “No because I was telling George, I still get butterflies the first game of the year. It’s like you know you’re a little nervous, you’re excited. I still get the jitters. It’s ok, it’s ok, you should have it. It’s (his) first primetime game, first major league game from college. Let it all out, let your emotions show.”

Q: What signs are you seeing that you guys as a team will be more productive with the pass rush than last year?

JONES: “Our chemistry as a defensive line, as a whole. Our chemistry on defense. We’ve got a lot of new guys which forces us to talk more, forces us to be more proactive, forces us to get to know our teammates better. I think as a defense, we’ll be better overall.”