HEAD COACH ANDY REID
OPENING STATEMENT: “Alright, before I get started, just a quick shout out to this being 9/11 – the 23rd year (since it happened) – to the victims of 9/11 and the first responders, for sure. Our hats go off to those who sacrifice so we can do what we do here. The Bengals. We look forward to the challenge of playing the Bengals, they’re a heck of a football team. We know we’ve got to have a good week of preparation. As far as the injuries go, really, we – the only person – Hollywood (Brown) is the only one that’s banged up there so he’s continuing to rehab and get himself up, but he won’t be out there today. Other than that, the time’s yours.”
Q: Does that indicate that Hollywood Brown won’t play Sunday?
REID: “Not necessarily, yeah. I wouldn’t say that.”
Q: The Bengals usually start off slow early in the year. Can you put your finger on the reason why?
REID: “Listen, they’re a good football team. They’re very well coached – I mean, (Bengals Head Coach) Zac (Taylor) does a great job. They do a great job on the defensive side and special teams. Right now, they’re just trying to get their guys back together that aren’t able to play, but we know that they’re going to come in here and be ready to go. I don’t know what’s gone on in the past or (about) anything else but I know every time we play each other it’s a heck of a football game.”
Q: You guys usually get a team’s best shot. What ways do you notice that materialize during a game?
REID: “Well, execution is the biggest one. That’s normally what you get and good, aggressive play. I’d tell you guys that tempos are different when you take each level, and the playoffs is kind of a crazy deal. When teams like this play each other, it’s just a different tempo, for whatever reason. I don’t know why but that’s how it goes.”
Q: You guys got the contract done with Noah Gray. What does he mean for both the present and the future?
REID: “He’s (Noah Gray) a good football player and he does a lot for us. He’s one of those guys that doesn’t get a whole lot of credit for all that he does but (he’s a) big time special teams player, great tight end. We do a bunch of double tight stuff plus he’s able to go in and spot (Travis) Kelce. He comes out of games with quite a few snaps because of the special teams. You know, he’s a four-phase guy there, can do anything (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator) Dave (Toub) needs him to do there and is willing and he loves being here so – and a great guy on top of all that.”
Q: What stood out to you about Rashee Rice in the Ravens game?
REID: “He (Rashee Rice) was more comfortable than he was last year, which makes sense, just having had the reps and experience. The one thing that he does well is he catches it and he gets himself up field. He’s a good, consistent catcher, works himself up field (and) is tough – plays physical. (At) the same time, he’s a willing blocker. (He’ll) get in there and mix it up there, so he’s really developing his whole game in all areas. He’ll keep rolling but it’s a way smaller margin than what he had to grow from the beginning here last year.”
Q: Do you think that Samaje Perine is a little more comfortable this week?
REID: “Listen, he (Samaje Perine) did a nice job for us. I don’t want to take anything away from him. He jumped in and had everything down and was able to play a few snaps for us. He’s going to be familiar with half of the guys that are on this team (the Bengals). He knows the routine there (and) a lot of the players.”
Q: The Week 1 passing offense around the league was not up to the standard that it usually is. Why do you think that is?
REID: “It takes time for that to develop, I think, that part of the game. A lot of variables will go into it just with the execution as opposed to handing the ball off to somebody. Between the timing and knowing your receivers and then all these secondaries that the defenses throw at you. It takes a little bit of time; the time’s been reduced in areas. Then – anyways, that’s what I see.”
Q: With the kind of game that Xavier Worthy had last week this early in the season, what can that do for him moving forward?
REID: “He (Xavier Worthy) did a nice job for us. Again, even with his size he was willing to get in the mix of the run game part of it. Having the success he had I think is a positive for a young guy to get going. Are you guaranteed two touchdowns every game? That’s not necessarily in the contract but it was great for him to get started that way. He knows that he can play at this level now and if he had any questions – I didn’t sense he had any questions – but if he did, those were answered.”
Q: What do you need to see from Hollywood Brown in practice to feel comfortable with him playing in a game?
REID: “They all set a little different, so I mean it’s something that has to move to get back into place. They all sit just a little different and heal – from what I understand, I’m not a physician by any means so they’re all just a bit different. I mean you’re talking just centimeters of it being off can be a problem. You want to make sure those things are healed and that they’re actually in the right spot. We’re having him (Hollywood Brown) see different people that are experts, I don’t think there’s a ton of data on it, especially in our field here – football. That’s kind of what’s going on but as far as working hard and he feels good, he feels like he’s in a pretty good spot. It’s not him, he would have been out there the last couple of weeks if he had a choice. Not the best – wouldn’t have been the best decision he made but you have to trust the doctors here.”
Q: How did you get the news about 9/11 and what were your memories of that day?
REID: “I was back there. I was back in Philly at that time, so it was a little crazy around that area. I remember talking to (Former NFL Coach) Mike Sherman who was at Green Bay, he called me and he was asking some questions about football, he hadn’t gotten the news out there. I said, ‘Hey you might want to turn the TV on, a little bit of craziness going on in this area here.’ That’s how I found out.”
Q: Were you able to process it in real time?
REID: “I’m not sure anybody could process it. I think everybody just reacted and it really seemed to be in a positive way. I mean from the stories that you hear on how people came to the rescue. That’s the good of mankind, we see some negative things and we have the tendency to harp on it but that right there, that was our country pulling together and working together and we can do some pretty magnificent things when that happens.”
Chiefs Player Quotes
September 11, 2024
QB PATRICK MAHOMES
Q: When you’re on the field, in what ways do you notice the energy of these potential AFC contender type teams?
MAHOMES: “I think you just see a raise in intensity just because you know that these games are going to matter at the end of the year. Obviously, it’s early in the season, everybody’s working through stuff, everybody’s trying to get better and better, but you know that this could be a tiebreaker or whatever you want to call it at the end of the year to determine seeding in (the) playoffs. It’s definitely a rise in intensity, especially in these games against other contenders.”
Q: Do you feel the opposing defense talk a little bit more or have more of an edge in these types of games?
MAHOMES: “I wouldn’t say – usually not early in the season because everybody’s trying to figure stuff out with their teams and trying to do stuff and play fast. (When) you get to (the) playoffs, sometimes there’s a little bit more talking here and there, but early in the season, you play these guys a lot so even though there’s trash talk maybe in the offseason or whatever like that, you have respect for the other guy on the other side of the field. It’s going to be a great game and I’m excited that we get to play it at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.”
Q: Is it weird to be playing the Bengals in Week 2 when you’re used to playing them late in the year?
MAHOMES: “For sure. Usually, it’s like the NFL saves it for later in the season knowing it’s going to be kind of one of those seeding games. Our schedule’s very different this year. We have a lot of great teams early. Obviously, we play like every day of the week, so it’s a different schedule. It’s a great test for us to play two of the best teams in the league back-to-back to start off the season, but it’s going to be about how we adjust and respond whenever adversity hits.”
Q: What allowed Rashee Rice to have the day that he did in the season opener?
MAHOMES: “I think he’s just – he’s gotten better and better. I think throughout training camp, throughout (the) end of last year, he’s gotten to be a more versatile receiver where he can do a lot of different things. We can put him on some read routes, we put him on, obviously, a lot of slant routes (and) stuff like that where he can win one-on-one, and he did that. I think as the season goes on, you’re going to see the full arsenal of routes that he can run. I mean, some where he can run deep routes, he can run intermediate routes, he can run those medium routes. I mean, he can do it all. Just having all those other weapons around him as well, it takes off the focus on him that you kind of saw at some points last year. I think that’s just going to make our offense so great.”
Q: What can the success that Xavier Worthy had in the season opener do for him going forward?
MAHOMES: “I think it’s just going to be a spark. It shows what he (Xavier Worthy) can do. Obviously, it showed his speed. It showed how he’s able to run routes and find open spaces. It just kind of gives him that confidence. I think he already had it anyways, but to show that he can do it on Sundays or whatever day of the week that we’re playing. It’s just kind of a start for him. We want him to keep building. We want to get him more and more involved in the offense, but a great start.”
Q: What do you feel like Noah Gray brings to the offense and the team as a whole?
MAHOMES: “He’s (Noah Gray) just a smart player. (He’s an) extremely smart player that does a lot of physical stuff that we need in this offense. He’s able to get himself open. He makes the catches whenever he’s asked to do it but (he’s) a guy that can just do it all. You need those guys in order to win football games, and he’s one of those guys that he can come in for Travis (Kelce) in spots and I have full confidence that he can go out there and make plays happen as well. He’s learned a ton behind Trav (Travis Kelce), and you can see him getting better and better each and every year. I was happy for him because he’s one of those guys that does it the right way and deserves the contract that he got.”
Q: What was your reaction when former President Donald J. Trump referenced you and your family again today in relation to his campaign?
MAHOMES: “I’ve always said, ‘I don’t want my place and my platform to be used to endorse a candidate or do whatever either way.’ I think my place is to inform people to get registered to vote. It’s to inform people to do their own research and then make their best decision for them and their family. I think that’s – every time I’m on this stage and I get asked these questions, I’m going to refer back to that because I think that’s what makes America so great.”
Q: You were at the U.S Open with Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift. Is that an important image to show that people who have different philosophies can get along?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean I think I’ve always – even dating back I think if you’ve seen my history I’ve grown up with people from every aspect of life and every background. I think the best thing about a football locker room and kind of how I’ve grown up in baseball locker rooms, everything about that is people can come together and achieve something and achieve a common goal. I think if we can, we talked about it awhile back – but I think if we can do that as a nation, I think that we can get the best out of each other. So, I think that is something I do every single day and whenever I am hanging with whoever I’m not thinking about their political views or anything like that, I’m thinking about the people and how they treat other people. I was with a lot of great people this weekend.”
Q: Does it affect you that former President Donald J. Trump brought up your wife Brittany Mahomes’ name?
MAHOMES: “No, I mean I think at the end of the day it’s about me and my family and how we treat other people. I think you see that Brittany (Mahomes) does a lot in the community (and) I do a lot in the community to help bring people up and give people other opportunities to use their voice. In the political times people are going to use stuff here and there, but I can’t let that affect how I go about my business every single day and live my life and try to live it to the best of my ability.”
Q: What’s your reaction to Nebraska Quarterback Dylan Raiola mimicking you?
MAHOMES: “I mean it’s cool, honestly. I was that guy. I grew up watching players. I remember being – when I (was growing) up, I loved (Former Yankee Shortstop) Alex Rodriguez (who) played shortstop. I would try to make plays just like him and do stuff like that and it helped me become the athlete that I am. It’s just telling me I’m getting a little old. That’s the biggest thing is that you have these guys that are coming up and doing some of the side arm stuff. I know (Nebraska Quarterback) Dylan (Raiola and) I train with him in the off season. (He is) a great kid (and) a great football player. I think he is going to make his own stamp on the game, and I think you have seen that early in his career.”
Q: Has Dylan Raiola acknowledged publicly that he has been mimicking you?
MAHOMES: “I don’t know if whenever you come in as a freshman you want to be on Twitter and be the part of the team. I think he (Nebraska Quarterback Dylan Raiola) wants it to be about his team. I think that is the right way to play the quarterback position is that it’s not about you, it’s about going out there and having success as a team. They’ve done that so far this year. So, even though – I think he just kind of wants to push this out and play football and go out there and win football games. I think that is the right way to play the position.”
Q: Have you been in contact with Miami WR Tyreek Hill since his recent situation?
MAHOMES: “No, I mean I haven’t had any contact with him (Dolphins Wide Receiver Tyreek Hill), but obviously an unfortunate situation. You’re glad that people are bringing light to it and there is an investigation being done to make sure everything was done the right way. Until that investigation is done, I won’t have any comment on it.”
Q: What were your thoughts of Hip-Hop Artist Kendrick Lamar being announced as the next Super Bowl halftime performer. Any thoughts on whether it should have been Kendrick Lamar or Lil Wayne?
MAHOMES: “Two guys (who) I’ve always loved to listen to their music. I grew up on (hip-hop artist) Lil Wayne and obviously (hip-hop artist) Kendrick (Lamar) has been an icon for a long time. I don’t think you could’ve made a wrong decision. I think both of those guys are great. I’m hopefully in the game, I won’t get to hear either one of them or (whoever) it is. I’m excited for Kendrick to have that platform and show the artist that he is and show the world how hip-hop has really made a movement in our culture.”
WR XAVIER WORTHY
Q: What stands out to you on the film of yourself other than your two touchdowns?
WORTHY: “I feel like a lot of things that I kind of focused on was understanding the defense. I feel like I did that. So, I just want to carry that over to this week and every other week, just understanding the defense (and) knowing what they’re going to do before every snap.”
Q: What are your thoughts on Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase?
WORTHY: “Man, (Bengals WR) Ja’Marr Chase is an excellent receiver. Just watching him at LSU with (Vikings WR) Justin Jefferson, they obviously made a lot of plays. Him coming in his rookie year he made a lot of plays, so it’s big ups to Ja’Marr.”
Q: Does the success in Week 1 give you confirmation that you are able to play at this level?
WORTHY: “I feel like in a way it does but I feel like just me as a person, I feel like – once I have a good game, it happened, it’s onto the next. The next game could be bad, so you never know, just be confident and just be humble at the end of the day.”
