HEAD COACH ANDY REID
OPENING STATEMENT: “Alright, as far as the injuries go, (Nick) Bolton, (Jaaron) Hayek, (Chris) Jones, (Kelvin) Joseph, (Justin) Reid (and Kadarius) Toney were out. Toney’s back is just stiffening up on him. Other than that, everybody practiced (and) had a good day. (Swayze) Bozeman hyperextended his knee today and we’ll just see where it goes from there. As far as the play time, for this game, we’ll go ones for a quarter, twos for the second quarter, threes the third quarter and fours for the fourth quarter and we’ll just keep it at that. Alright, the time’s yours.”
Q: Wanya Morris left for a minute and came back?
REID: “He (Wanya Morris) came back. Yeah, he just tweaked his knee a little bit. I think he’s going to be alright.”
Q: You have a long history for former Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden and he’s been here a couple of days. Is there any consideration for an advisor role?
REID: “Listen, he advises a lot of people, so he’s staying busy. The grass isn’t growing under his feet, man, he’s rolling. I think he’s just going to keep doing that (advising) and hopefully he’s able to get back in (into the NFL) and get a head coaching job. (He’s) a phenomenal football coach, he’s touched everybody here. Both sides of the ball – special teams, he got to sit down in those meetings. (He’s) just a heck of a coach.”
Q: What are your thought on the new kickoff rule? How do you prepare?
REID: “(Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator) Dave Toub, our special teams coach, he’s been practicing it since OTAs. He’s trying to find the things that you can do and that you can’t do. It’ll be a bit of a learning process as we go but we think we have a decent plan for it.”
Q: Are there any the young players in particular that you’re looking forward to seeing play on Saturday night?
REID: “I’m going to play everybody, Adam (Teicher). So, all those young guys, I’d love to see how they compete. The higher draft picks are going to be in there (against) a little bit better competition, so (I) want to see how they handle that.”
Q: What about Kingsley Suamataia?
REID: “Kingsley (Suamataia) being one of them. Yeah, so Kingsley being one of them that’ll be in there working. We’ll just see how he does in there but I’m anticipating good things.”
Q: The initial roster showed the fullback spot coming back. What does that offer you flexibility-wise on offense?
REID: “(Carson) Steele, he’s kind of a tweener guy – he’s a heck of a running back. You see him out here running the football and he does a pretty good job. What he did at Ball State was unbelievable (and at) UCLA – unbelievable. We’re kind of maneuvering around and seeing if he can do the fullback stuff and it looks like, so far, he can, and then we’ll just see. We’ll see how the numbers work out. You’ve got to have the special teams numbers and all that stuff, so we’ll just see how the numbers work out as we go down the stretch.”
Q: Harrison Butker just resigned his contract, what has he meant to this team?
REID: “I mean obviously a lot. He’s (Harrison Butker) been in huge situations for us and (has) really come through. His consistency has been great. This won’t bother him because he’s got that work ethic and he just sticks to it. It won’t be a distraction at all. Listen, I’m happy for him, happy for the organization and he’s a heck of a football player – great kicker.”
Q: How important was it for you to have a veteran in the kicker spot, like Harrison Butker?
REID: “I like that. I mean I like – the field goal kicker – I like to have a little time under his belt although we’ve done it both ways. It’s great to have the experience and then at the level of experience that he’s (Harrison Butker) had is like crazy. He’s done it in huge games for us.”
Q: You just resigned Harrison Butker which brings attention to Trey Smith, Creed Humphrey and Nick Bolton because they’re next up regarding contracts. How important have those three been? How do you go about their future and contracts?
REID: “That’s the trick – how you do keep them. That’s (General Manager) Brett’s (Veach) – he’s the magician in that. I’m just a spectator there. They’ve played so well for us (so) you got to see what you can do with the contracts as they come up.”
Q: Will Joe Thuney play in this upcoming preseason game?
REID: “Joe (Thuney) will not.”
Q: Will any of the guys who sat out of practice today play in the game on Saturday?
REID: “I would probably say no. We’ll see. I mean we’ll get it to you. We have a few days.”
Q: You usually play Patrick Mahomes in the first preseason game. What is your philosophy on that as other teams don’t play their starting quarterback in these games?
REID: “I allow him (Patrick Mahomes) to get in the swing of things. The ones know how to do that, both sides of the ball, they know how to go about doing that. Somewhere you got to get on there and shoot and this gives him an opportunity to do that.”
Chiefs Player Quotes
August 7, 2024
QB PATRICK MAHOMES
Q: How excited are you to get in this preseason game and finally see your wide receivers in a game-like setting?
MAHOMES: “I’m extremely excited. I mean, obviously for me to go out there and play with these guys and showcase what we’re – we have the ability to do, but then learn from our mistakes too. I mean you want to go out there and play for real and play against someone else. I’m tired of going against (Defensive Coordinator Coach Steve) Spags (Spagnuolo) and every defense known to man and so I think just going out there, letting the guys play, make decisions under fire and have to make those right decisions and learn from the mistakes after.”
Q: Have you seen some things that let you know things will be different once the season starts as far as passing game?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean obviously with the speed we’re going to be able to hit guys over the top, but I think the biggest thing is you want to be able to do both. I think that’s something we’ve worked on all camp – is you got to be able to hit the guys over the top and then when the defenses play deep, you got to be able to hit the medium – type things and then we need to be able to run the football and that’s what makes great offenses great is just having the ability to do all of that. So as much as I want to throw it deep every single play, I think just being able to do everything is going to be the biggest part of our offense.”
Q: What have you assessed from the wide receiver battle?
MAHOMES: “I think what I’ve loved the most is how much they root for each other. I mean you can see it out there, when guys make plays, everybody is going out there to celebrate. We have a lot of good guys that are playing hard and all making plays against a great defense. It’s not always going to be perfect (and) it’s not always going to be the perfect play or whatever, but they’re all competing every single time (and) they’re rooting for each other and that’s what you want in the receiving room is a good group of guys that are talented.”
Q: How do you feel physically compared to last year? How do you see your team?
MAHOMES: “I feel great physically. I think I’m – guys have the right mindset. I mean at the end of the day all you can do is focus on today. Obviously we want to win three in a row, but we know just as much as anybody, is that you got to execute today at practice in Saint Joseph in order to do that. So, if you take it day-by-day type of process the hope is at the end of the year that you can go out there and get that ring.”
Q: Do having more guys that can run deep open things up for Rashee Rice and Travis Kelce?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I mean obviously if we can hit the people deep, it’s going to make the safeties get back and then you – it’ll open up more space in that medium part of the field. I mean y’all have seen Rashee (Rice) has had a great camp and so has Travis (Kelce), so has guys like Noah (Gray) and Wiley (Jared Wiley) – I mean it’s – if you can open it up down the field with those speed guys, that threat opens every – the whole entire field up and so I’m excited for it. As well as just letting those speed guys just work into that intermediate range as well. It’s about being – having a diverse offense, being able to go out there and attack in different ways, and I’m excited for the opportunity to go out there and show it.”
Q: What have you seen from Xavier Worthy?
MAHOMES: “Yeah no, Xavier (Worthy) he does a great job – obviously he’s fast, but it’s almost like he runs fast, but he can run with pace fast and so he’s able to track the ball really well. He runs a lot of great routes and he’s going to get as physical camp as any here so. I mean he’s done a great job trying to fight off press as best as he can, getting through there (and) making plays happen and so he’ll keep getting better and better. I mean if he can get through this camp, he’ll be able to get through a lot of stuff, so I’m excited for him and how he’s progressed throughout camp.”
Q: What have you seen from Isiah Pacheco after his work during the offseason? Has he improved at all?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, he’s done a great job. He actually – he would run routes, (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid would put him out there and let him run some type of routes – some shorter routes (and) some deeper routes that he hadn’t ran before and some read routes that necessarily aren’t for running backs and he’s done a great job with that. He wants to be great. I mean he’s done a great job running the football for us, he’s done a great job catching out of the back field, but if he can catch it from the slot or from a receiver type position, it’s just going to help him be (an) even better football player.
Q: What does it mean for Former Raiders Head Coach Jon Gruden to be out here?
MAHOMES: “It’s always great to hear offensive minds and obviously someone that we’ve went up against so you kind of can listen to the ways that were trying to go against us and combating stuff that we did so it did well. Then him (Jon Gruden) and (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid have a long history and so just to hear them talk about old school football plays is always cool for me being a football historian. He’s been a – it’s been fun to have him out here and just listen to him talk about football.”
Q: On Kingsley Suamataia. Do you feel yourself thinking that you have to be a little quicker, given that he is a rookie?
MAHOMES: “Yeah you got to just trust that he’s (Kinglsey Suamataia) going to go out there and make the plays happen. He’s doing a great job this camp, going against a lot of different types of rushers. Obviously, it’s going to be a great challenge – I don’t know how much their starters are going to play – but going against the defensive ends with (Jaguars Defensive End Travon) Walker and (Jaguars Defensive End Josh) Hines-Allen and so I think just him going up against some of the best is going to even bring out the best in him and that’s what you have to expect. And then for everybody, I mean everybody that’s going to be out there and so that’s what it’s all about. I’ve got trust in those guys in order to go out there and play the game that I want to play so I’ll let them go out there and be the football player that he’s been all camp.”
Q: With the newfound speed of the wide receivers, how do you think Head Coach Andy Reid and Offensive Coordinator Matt Nagy will go about calling the game with a balance between the deep ball and check downs?
MAHOMES: “I think it’s just about being smart and I think more than even about (Head) Coach (Andy Reid) calling the game, it’s got to be about me making the right decisions. He’s going to call plays that have shots in them but every time he calls a play that has a shot in there, there’s plays for me to get underneath and get to the right guy. So, it’s about him – (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid, (Offensive Coordinator) Coach (Matt) Nagy, me and all the other coaches talking it through throughout the week – knowing when we want to take shots, when we want to be aggressive, what the situation is in the football game and take it and be aggressive but at the same time, when it’s not there, get underneath these guys and let them make plays. That’s what I’ve learned over my time is you’ve got to be making the right decision out there at the end of the day.”
Q: You’re obviously always on the other end of this but what do you think are the challenges of tracking a ball as a receiver? Why are some so good at it and others not?
MAHOMES: “I mean it’s hard. You’re running full speed, trying to catch a football in the air and not knowing if you’re going to get hit the moment you catch the football. It’s a tough job as any, I think, in the world because you can catch the ball and get your cleats knocked off of you. I commend those guys man. It’s hard to track a football running full speed with the ball. I throw it high, throw it far but I always let them know that I’m the best at tracking the football. I grew up shagging BP (batting practice) so I’m pretty nice at it myself, but I wasn’t getting hit.”
Q: You always talk about getting that first hit out of the way. How excited are you for that this week potentially?
MAHOMES: “I already took my first hit. You didn’t see Chris (Jones) the other day? He just smoked me (laughter). Nah, it’s cool. I always want to get hit but not hit hard. So, if I can just throw the ball and one of those d-ends just wants to just give me a little push, that’s all I need. It’s cool, I like playing in the preseason honestly. Getting in there, trying to make sure that we’re doing stuff the right way and then getting out. Trying to keep everybody healthy and then playing the sport that I love so I’m excited of the opportunity. Hopefully we can hold off the rain a little bit and go out there and play a good football game against a good team.”
Q: On signing Harrison Butker.
MAHOMES: “Yeah, it’s awesome. I mean, for me it’s just getting in field goal range in some of these situations. Like at the end of the Super Bowl last year. Obviously, we want to score a touchdown in that situation but knowing that once we cross the 50 (yard line) that we’re pretty much, we’re good to at least get to over time. It’s something that – I don’t even know what the word is – it’s something that you have to just rely on and it’s something that’s just fun to have, honestly. I mean knowing that you don’t even have to worry because that guy’s (Harrison Butker) going to knock it through and so I’m glad that they were able to get that deal done and he can go out there and just kick field goals.”
Q: On being ranked number four on the Top 100 list. What was your reaction?
MAHOMES: “It is what it is. At the end of the day all I can do is go out there and just play the sport that I love, and the rankings are the rankings.”
Q: Did you ever get the helmet back that broke last year?
MAHOMES: “I haven’t gotten it back yet. I’m trying to get it back still. (Equipment Director) Allen (Wright), man, Allen just sometimes he’s kind of lazy. I wasn’t going to say it but it’s just a little bit (laughter).”
K HARRISON BUTKER
Q: On being the highest paid kicker. How does it feel to be the highest paid kicker in the league?
BUTKER: ““Exactly, at least for now (laughter). You never know. In six months from now, there’s going to be another kicker that tops it. I think it’s good to know that the kicker market is still moving forward. I think offense is definitely the strength of the NFL right now. There’s a lot of points being scored, and kickers are a part of that – games are closer than ever. (Baltimore Ravens Kicker Justin) Tucker signed his contract two years ago and then (Philadelphia Eagles Kicker) Jake Elliott just signed and tied his. I’m grateful to be able to move it up a little bit. Like you said, I know there’s going to be a bunch of kickers after me that are going to continue to push it.”
Q: Have you had any discussions with anybody within the organization that may have had contrasting opinions from your speech earlier this year?
BUTKER: “Yeah, and I will say, I feel like this team is so close. Ever since that speech, there have been tons of conversations in the locker room with guys just connecting and trying to understand each other. I think it’s been a beautiful thing to see and I think that’s what’s so special about sports and what’s so special about football. There’s not many sports where you have 50 to 100 guys with a bunch of different beliefs and we’re all fighting together to win. You have a bunch of different personalities (and) a bunch of different backgrounds and we’re all there together trying to understand each other and realize that at the end of the day, we have one goal together and that’s to win football games.”
