KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid and several players fielded questions during a Friday presser. Following are their comments.
HEAD COACH ANDY REID
OPENING STATEMENT: "The guy that was limited today was Chris (Jones). He was out there and moved around a little bit. Not too much, but enough to get loosened up. LeSean McCoy was back, as was Matt Moore. Both of them are coming off of the sickness. They moved around a little bit, too. They were out there and did a little bit of individual work and such. Look forward to the challenge of playing the Titans. We know that they are a heck of a football team. It should be a great game. We look forward to bringing them right here into Arrowhead with our great crowd. We know that they will be out there strong and with great support. With that, time's yours."
Q: How do you feel about Chris Jones' chances of playing on Sunday?
REID: "We'll see. I'm going to see how he feels tomorrow. We'll just go from there. We talk about going day-by-day, well this one is day-to-day."
Q: What does it look like Titans QB Ryan Tannehill has done from a progression standpoint since you played him and the Titans in Week 10?
REID: "One of the top offenses in the National Football League since he's been in there. Everybody talks about the run game, but this guy can sling it. He's got some good guys to do it, too. He's playing good football. Smart kid. You're really into those stories, as long as you don't have to play them. But he's done a nice job."
Q: How are you able to replicate what you're going to see out of the Titans offense in practice?
REID: "You're right, you can't replicate that. But we played against him, so we know what he brings. That's not far from the memory. It wasn't that long ago that we played them. Listen, the guys have been playing for a long time, if you include training camp. If you're in hitting shape, you're in hitting shape by now."
Q: How impressed were you with Travis Kelce's ability to impact the game last week, after getting limited reps in practice?
REID: "He's actually feeling better this week, which is good. He's had an impressive career. He's probably playing the best football that he has been playing over that time. That's been pretty good. You watch him work and how he goes about his business. He works extremely hard at it and studies the game. He loves the game and has all of those intangible things."
Q: What have you seen out of Chris Jones away from the practice field that has aided in his recovery?
REID: "He's been with (Vice President of Sports Medicine and Performance) Rick (Burkholder) and they've been working. He's spending the time trying to get himself right there and he was able to come out today and move around a little bit. We'll just see. We'll see how he does as it goes on. I'm curious to see how he feels tomorrow."
Q: How has Damien Williams handled fighting through injuries and what do you feel like you're getting out of him?
REID: "He's playing good football. He was banged up and he worked through it. I think he has done a nice job. Playing physical and running hard. Been impressed with his game right now. Catching the ball well, too."
Q: Would you travel to Mexico every year if it meant you would make it to the Super Bowl?
REID: "Absolutely (laughter)."
Q: What would you say to the fans that came out and saw you play in Mexico City earlier this year?
REID: "Unbelievable. They were phenomenal. It was great to see all of the Chiefs jerseys down there and all of the support that we had. Whoever the cook was that was at the hotel did a phenomenal job. The street tacos, man, they were phenomenal. We appreciated the whole thing. The hospitality was great."
Q: Do you ever sit back and think about what it would mean to you to get back to the Super Bowl?
REID: "I don't do that. That's not how I roll at all. That doesn't take away from wanting to win the football game at hand. That's why I'm in the business. I love the business. You love the competition and so on. I don't go there. You're so focused in on this game here against the Titans that the other stuff doesn't matter."
Q: You've coached some great safeties in your career. How much does Tyrann Mathieu compare to those?
REID: "We had E.B. (Eric Berry) here, too. We've been blessed to be around some pretty good safeties. He is one of those. He has great instincts. Great speed. He was a real good returner coming out. I think he led the nation in his ability to return. There's an ability there to play in space and have vision. All of those things that you need to carry a ball, he can do that from the back end. He is really a unique person. I've enjoyed being around him this year. He is everything everybody said he was, plus a little."
Q: What do you feel like Travis Kelce's chances are of playing on Sunday?
REID: "Yeah, he'll be good to go."
Q: Do you feel any different in preparing Patrick Mahomes for this game, compared to one year ago?
REID: "I think he knows what to expect. You can stand there and tell him as much as you want as a coach, until they get in there and feel it. I think that's important. He has had that opportunity to do that – everything from the press conferences to the speed of the game. Not that it was difficult coaching him at that time, at all, just the fact that he knows what to expect, I think that's important."
Q: Did you feel that maybe the stage was a little too big for the team last year and that it took a while for them to get their feet under them? How do you coach that?
REID: "I wouldn't say big. I would say that it was fast, early. It just took us a minute to catch up to that. We took off and played pretty good football. But you're playing an experienced team there. They were moving around pretty good and that experience helped them. That was a pretty veteran group that we played."
TE TRAVIS KELCE
Q: How are you feeling heading into Sunday’s game?
KELCE: “I’m ready to roll. I’m ready to roll. We’ve got the best trainers in the National Football League as well as the best coaches for working with me on this. I’m just fired up to get back out there in front of Arrowhead and get back rolling.”
Q: Last year many people said you all weren’t ready for the physicality of the Patriots and the AFC Championship, how does that change being back a year later?
KELCE: “You’re more comfortable going into it. It’s not a situation you haven’t been in. We’ve been here before, in this exact situation here at Arrowhead, playing in front of our crowd. We’re just going to have to start fast. It’s as simple as that.”
Q: Last week after the game you said Patrick Mahomes is the best quarterback in the NFL and he’ll prove it again this week. What is it about him that leads you to have that confidence in him?
KELCE: “I don’t know if you’ve seen him play before (laughter, but he can play the game. A lot of it is in preparation and a lot of it is just natural instincts that he’s been able to build over the course of his life. He’s very confident in how he plays the game and he’s very free in how he plays the game. At the same time, every Monday that comes around, he’s in the film room, he’s in Coach Reid’s ear and the offensive staff’s ear trying to figure out what’s the game plan so he always has an answer for what the defense is throwing at us.”
Q: Can you take us through your game preparation for last year and then this year and what do you do specifically to get yourself ready for Sunday?
KELCE: “I’m a big visualizer, so I like to visualize what they could possibly be doing and think through the possibilities of how I can get open versus what they’re showing us. And then, getting out here on the practice field and going to work. It’s as simple as just having a plan for every scenario and there’s going to be a lot of scenarios out on the field you need to be ready for.”
DT CHRIS JONES
Q: Do you think you’ll be able to play on Sunday?
JONES: “I’m still day-to-day. Just exhausting our resources with (Vice President of Sports Medicine and Performance) Rick (Burkholder, the training staff. Just continue to build up to Sunday and see how I feel.”
Q: Have you ever been through a calf injury before? What have you tried to do with the training staff to get you in a position to even practice today?
JONES: “The treatments, etc., whatever they have set up for me. I’ve never been through this type of issue, so I just make sure that I bear with Rick. They have a good understanding, they’ve seen this multiple times. Whatever they tell me to do, I try to do it to the best of my ability.”
Q: Emotionally, what was it like to not be able to go last week?
JONES: “It was tough. Especially in a playoff game. These games are important. These games are win or go home. When there’s so much at stake, you want to be out there for your team. You want to be out there being the best player you can be for your team. Putting your team in the best positions. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to.”
Q: Coach Brendan Daly tried to console you in that moment when you weren’t able to go. What did he say to you and was there anything you could take from that for this week?
JONES: “It was nothing. He understood where I was coming from, and I understood where he was coming from. We have a great, great, great line of communication established. Unfortunately, I tried to push off and go last week, but I wasn’t (able to). We just keep building on this week and Sunday, we’ll see.”
DE FRANK CLARK
Q: What are you telling yourself as you go into Sunday’s game?
CLARK: “Keeping the main thing, the main thing. You have to stop the run. You have to force as many third downs as possible and you have to execute. It’s championship football. Anytime championship football is being played, execution becomes key. The details, everything small, becomes a highlight. That’s technique, fundamentals, playing sound defense and knocking back. They’ve got a great running attack. Everybody knows what they’re doing. They’ll come in, they’re going to try to run the ball 30, 35 times a game. They’re going to try to get that boy [Derrick Henry] to over 200 yards rushing. Mike Vrabel is a great coach. He’s been leading those guys all season. Tough team. That’s what they build their front on. The offensive line is one of the better offensive lines our defensive line is going to play this year. They’ve got great leadership over there in Taylor Lewan. Got some guys, Rodger Saffold came over from the Rams. He’s been playing some great ball. They want to run the ball to the left side of their line, mostly. We know what to expect. It’s Friday. I’ve been working for the last week. Well not the last week, sorry, for the last few days, getting this game plan since Monday. We’re ready. We’re confident in everything, and we want to just go out there and have fun.”
Q: One of the reasons you missed going to the Super Bowl last year was because of a costly neutral zone penalty. What has Steve Spagnuolo been telling you guys mentally to not make those simple mistakes and penalties?
CLARK: “Honestly, that’s not something we’re even thinking about. Like you said, that’s a mental mistake. That’s something on yourself. You shoot yourself in the foot when you do things like that at the end of the day. It’s football. The ball’s right there. It’s simple, if the ball’s there, you put your hand behind the ball and you’re onsides. That’s kind of how I’ve been playing football. That’s why I haven’t lined up offsides all season, probably all my career. If I jump offsides, that happens. That’s called battle wounds. It’s OK to jump offsides from time to time as a defensive end. But lining up offsides, it’s inexcusable.”
Q: Ryan Tannehill has had a lot of success with play action this season. What do you tell your teammates about balancing between the aggressive nature to stop Derrick Henry, but to not be too aggressive so the play action doesn’t succeed?
CLARK: “It’s your keys. You get lost when you see all the motion and you see all the stuff they do before the play. It’s just keying in on your man. One man. You defeat your man, you win that down. It’s a down at a time and not getting too far ahead of yourself. Like I said, when you got all the motion and stuff, that’s what it’s for, it’s eye candy to distract you as the player. Get you looking left, get you looking right when everything is coming right at you. You got Ryan Tannehill, I don’t know where people got off saying he was falling off, but great quarterback. Got 4.6 speed still running as a quarterback when he’s extending downs with his feet. Like you said, last two games he’s playing some great football off his play action. Why? Because the guy’s running for 200 yards a game and getting the ball 35 times a game. Anytime I got a running back running for 200 yards and getting the ball 35 times, I’m sure that’s going to open up play action. That’s just common sense. At the end of the day, your secondary, you have to stay disciplined with the eyes. Linebacker got to get in depth after they play that run. Our job as a defensive line is to convert on pass rushing. They’re a good team. They hold a lot. They’re going to attach on the outside of our shoulder pads. It’s going to be our job to get to the quarterback and disrupt all of that.”
K HARRISON BUTKER
Q: Last time against the Titans you guys had some errors on special teams. Last week you guys started off slow but got some key plays. Can you talk about what those kinds of plays mean for you guys?
BUTKER: “I think special teams are crucial. On offense and defense, there are a lot more plays than on special teams, so everything matters. We played that Tennessee game at their place obviously. We had some crucial errors. In last week’s game, I thought we bounced back really strong. We were able to make the comeback and win that game. Special teams are really important. Obviously, if you ask a kicker that, that’s all he does, so I love it.”
Q: Did you go back and watch the AFC Championship Game from last year to gain anything from that game for this game? Is there anything that you’ve seen from anyone else in similar conditions at a similar time of year that you would take on?
BUTKER: “I know this game will probably be similar weather conditions to the last AFC Championship Game. The last three games have been similar, too. I haven’t given too much thought towards this next game being 10 or 20 degrees colder. Cold is cold, I guess. Didn’t watch too much of that AFC Championship Game. I thought it went smoothly, but for me, I’m really honed into what I do during practice that week and make sure I’m not deviating from what I do all season. When I get to game day, I’m in my rhythm and things are hitting on all cylinders. I think film is crucial, especially with kicking. If you have one small thing that’s off, it can be the difference in a make or a miss. You really have to be critical of yourself and not a lot of people can notice, except you. Throughout my kicking career, I’ve learned my body and my technique. You are kind of the only one that can see if you’re messing up anywhere.”
Q: What’s the advantage about being able to play at home?
BUTKER: “It’s huge. We are comfortable in our stadium. It’s the same field that we’ve been playing on all year. Obviously, the fans will have the advantages in terms of sound. I think just being at the home hotel, having that same routine, is going to be huge. Everyone was expecting to go to Baltimore to play the Ravens, but we’re ready to be here. Just because it’s a home game doesn’t mean it’s a given obviously, but we’re really excited to be home.”
Q: One of the things that Special Teams Coordinator Dave Toub and Dustin Colquitt talked about this week was that they got a jump on you guys in the last game against them with that block on the field goal. How does that go in terms of communication between you, James [Winchester] and Dustin [Colquitt]?
BUTKER: “I think it’s super important. Obviously, there isn’t a huddle, but it’s something we do talk on the sidelines before we go out there. The linemen, they’re going when they see the ball go. But James, Dustin, and I have to have a game plan going into that. Obviously when we played Tennessee, their guy made a great play, getting a jump on the ball. That’s something that we’ve addressed, and we fixed. We have to learn from our mistakes and move on.”
CB BASHAUD BREELAND
Q: How fired up for you this chance? This team was here last year but you weren’t a part of the roster. How fired up are you to be here in this AFC Championship?
BREELAND: “This is a good opportunity. In my career, I never really made the playoffs. This will be my second chance I’ll be in the playoffs. I lost in the first round (to) Green Bay (in the 2015 season). I’m just happy to be a piece to help them get over this hump.”
Q: How much of what you’ve seen on film of them playing off play-action, how much of that is just trying to understand formations and situations where they take those shots or is it just reading your normal keys on certain plays?
BREELAND: “I can’t really say. I mean, their play-action really comes off their run. They run hard and they play-action to try to keep us honest and take those shots. Their coach is methodical with it. I can’t really say what the thought-process is on that.”
Q: A lot of the guys that were with the team last year were talking about in the AFC Championship Game, the physicality was different. The Patriots were really aggressive grabbing receivers at the line. Is that the attitude that you are going into this game with is that it’s going to be more physical than normal and you’re going to have to do some of that?
BREELAND: “I feel like our defense, that’s what we feed on – physicality. Especially in the secondary, we like to get our hands on guys. That’s just our DNA. I feel like that’s the DNA that we’re trying to build in the secondary and that’s what we’re continuing to do every day to get better at.”
Q: Looking back, you’ve had to jump from team to team with some interesting contract stuff. How grateful and happy have you been to get this opportunity?
BREELAND: “It’s been pretty good. It was a tough road losing the deal with Carolina last year after my rookie deal and having to really hone in and get back to Bashaud Breeland with the Green Bay Packers. That season didn’t go how I would have liked, as far as a winning standpoint. When I had the opportunity to come here, I jumped on it. I feel like it’s been one of the best decisions I’ve made in my life.”
LB REGGIE RAGLAND
Q: Obviously you are familiar with Derrick Henry. Have you been kind of a source of knowledge for your teammates or because you guys played them in Week 10, is that kind of understood what this guy brings?
RAGLAND: “I just told them that you just have to go out there and try to hit him. He’s a big guy and if you play defense, you’ve got to love to hit. This is my type of game. I think I’m used to hitting him a little bit from my years at Alabama with him, but we’ve just got to go out there and get in the way of him and just hit him and wrap him up.”
Q: Are you going to give Derrick Henry a ‘Roll Tide’ if you get him good?
RAGLAND: “Probably so. That’s my nephew, so that’s my guy. He’s one of my closest friends since leaving Alabama, so yeah, I might do a little something.”
Q: How often do you and Derrick Henry communicate throughout the season over the years?
RAGLAND: “Every time he posts a picture or something, I comment on it. He’ll comment on mine. But the offseason, that’s when I try to link up with my guys and see them and see how things went throughout the season and things like that.”
Q: In what ways do you think this scheme is a little bit better suited for this challenge than this time last year?
RAGLAND: “Playing in a 3-4 or a 4-3, to me it really doesn’t matter. It’s football. You’ve got to go out there and play regardless. You have to line up from the man across from you and kick his butt. It doesn’t matter what type of scheme you’re in. You have to go out there and play regardless. Whatever the coaches call, we have to go out there and execute it. It doesn’t matter if we feel like it’s the best call in this situation or not. It’s our job to go execute it and it’s the coaches’ job to call the plays. I don’t want any excuses from this week. There aren’t any excuses. It’s time to get the job done.”
WR MECOLE HARDMAN
Q: How do you feel physically and mentally heading into this weekend’s AFC Championship Game?
HARDMAN: “I feel good. A good week of practice. Just ready to go in there, have a good game and hopefully, come out with a win.”
Q: What has your rookie year been like for you?
HARDMAN: “It has been a long year from pre-combine to combine to the rookie minicamp, OTAs and fall camp. It has been a long ride, but I am happy to be here and still be playing football. Playing football in January, I think everybody wants that. I am just happy to be here with this team and trying to go win a Super Bowl.”
Q: How did playing at Georgia help you prepare for important games like this weekend?
HARDMAN: “You play in the SEC, we play in front of big crowds all the time, every game. It is a different talent level in the SEC and definitely prepares us for the NFL. What (Georgia Head) Coach (Kirby) Smart brought for us and the program he brought definitely prepared me for this moment.”
Q: Did you notice a different level of speed during last week’s playoff game?
HARDMAN: “Oh yeah, it is definitely faster. Guys are out there with a purpose. It is playoff time, so it was faster. [Head Coach Andy Reid] said it is going to be faster this week. All I know is just go out there, practice fast, be prepared for it and when the game comes, I will be ready.”
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