AFCWEST

I agree 100%. Its as if the famous WASP PLAY has gotten inti his head.

AUSTIN BLYTHEC, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS Chiefs C Austin Blythe will miss three weeks after undergoing sports hernia surgery. The timeline gives Blythe a chance to return without missing games. Signed to a one-year, $3.9 million contract in March, Blythe is being counted on to improve an interior line that started Daniel Kilgore and Austin Reiter at center last season. With 22 days before the opener, Blythe will be in a race to get cleared for Week 1.

For those who did, Thornhill made the message very clear after a great performance in Friday night’s 17-10 win over the Arizona Cardinals: “I’m back,” Thornhill excitedly assured reporters. “I’m back.” “There were times last season I was doubting myself,” Thornhill continued. “I was never 100% — I just had to fight through the pain. This offseason, I’ve just attacked it. I’m trying to get my knee back to 100%, and I can definitely say I’m back.” It’s safe to assume some of Thornhill’s confidence in post-game derived from the amazing play he made a few hours earlier.

What happened to that 2018 Chiefs offense?

Daurice Will Make The Roster Speaking of the final roster, Daurice Fountain has been a standout during the first two weeks of the preseason for the Chiefs. After catching four passes for 38 yards against San Francisco, Fountain followed that up with three catches for 54 yards against Arizona. Fountain, a former 2018 fifth-round pick, has played very well during this preseason, making it difficult for the Chiefs to move on from him. Fountain made a couple of tough catches, but the one that stood out was the 41-yard catch along the sideline late in the third quarter. Fountain will not be a guy who gets a lot of playing time, but he is a name to remember as roster cuts come due at month’s end.

AFCWEST: Both of these guys may be cut? Demarcus Robinson was underwhelming again, catching two of six targets for 10 yards. Cornell Powell continues to play with the third-team offense. Powell caught his lone target of the night for six yards. Pringle and Hardman are the two frontrunners for the WR2 role.

Defensive Player of the Game: Juan Thornhill This could be several different guys from the Chiefs’ first-team defense. However, after getting reps with the third team in practice this week — and hearing all the whispers in the media — Thornhill arguably stepped up the most. He got a taste of the ball on a nice pass breakup early in the game, following that up with the defensive play of the game when he intercepted McCoy in the end zone. He certainly looked healthy on that play. Thornhill continued his solid play deep into the second half — notably playing tight coverage on third-and-goal to force the Cardinals to kick a field goal in the third quarter.

“Before the game, Fenton tweaked his hamstring,” said Reid. “Looks like it’s a knot, but we’ll see [Saturday] when we get back.” The Chiefs’ top two running backs suffered injuries during the game. “Clyde hurt his right ankle,” noted Reid. “He’s got a slight sprain on the inside of his ankle. We’ll just see… they’re going to check it tomorrow and do what they do there. It’s tender now. It doesn’t look like a high-ankle sprain and that’s always a good thing, but they’ll double-check it.” Running back Darrel Williams entered the concussion protocol and he did not return to the game. Defensive linemen Derrick Nnadi (hip) and Frank Clark (hamstring) — as well as offensive lineman Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (hand) — also missed the contest.

AP: It seems like the team should just decide to make one of these guys the second wide receiver and be done with it. But as Reid would say... that’s not how he rolls. Instead, Hardman and Pringle are likely to share the role as the receiver behind Hill — and for one simple reason: they each bring a different set of skills to the table. Reid loves that kind of approach.

AP: Patrick Mahomes just didn't look like himself on Friday night. He wasn’t making connections with his receivers. He threw balls into the ground. He stayed on the field into the second quarter, leading his teammates through three Kansas City drives — and left the game after completing 10 of 18 passes for 78 yards, no touchdowns and a very ill-advised interception. His passer rating on the night was a measly 43.3. Ouch.

From AP: 18 snaps. Two sacks. You want to do the math on that? Moving Jones into his new role in the Kansas City defense has looked a little like a move of sheer desperation to many fans. In their view, the team made the change because it lacks edge rushers. But I’m not sure I’m buying that explanation — because according to Pro Football Focus statistics, Jones lined up on the edge on 32% of his 2020 snaps. Essentially, he’s doing something that he’s already been doing — just more often than before. It’s all possible because the Chiefs acquired veteran defensive tackle Jarran Reed, have Khalen Saunders all the way back from his injury — and appear to have hit a home run with last season’s undrafted free agent Tershawn Wharton. Without them, they might not have been able to move Jones around so much. But with them, opposing offenses will have literally no idea where Jones is going to line up on a given play. I wouldn't want to game plan against that. Would you?

Key practice squad. Poor games.

That int was Dieter falling down.

Trade Henne!

BEUCHELLE

I like Beuchelle. He can be #2 next year?

Yes

Even pre season a first half shut out is sweet.

Hughes is a gamer!

I cant wait to see the back ups in the second haly. Hughes my #1 guy first half.

Chiefs dont need one guy to be the #2. Watkins was out most of the time. Andy will rotate guys like he does his backs.

For the Hardman haters

Arizona has a pretty good D. I think Reed is looking at guys vs calling plays to win.

Exactly.

Watkins hardly played last year and the offense was fine. Mahomes is way off. I also think he is thinking to much. Maybe intentionally working on specific things.