Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid Quotes
January 2, 2026
HEAD COACH ANDY REID
OPENING STATEMENT: “Alright, the guys that didn’t practice today were Trey Smith, (Xavier) Worthy and then (Jerry) Tillery for personal reasons, it’s not a health thing there. Look forward to the challenge of playing the Raiders. It’s Raider week and so I know they’ll be fired up and our guys will be fired up. They’re a well-coached team, I think we all know that and they’ve been banged up a little bit like we’ve been banged up so things have gone a little bit different (of a) direction than probably either of us thought they would go but it’ll be a heck of a game. With that, time’s yours.”
Q: Outside of a win, what is going to make this game a success?
REID: “Every chance some of these young guys have to play, benefits the team (and) benefits them being a part of the team. I’d tell you that the last few games. If there’s a plus that you can take out of it, then that’d be it.”
Q: How have you seen Kingsley Suamataia grow at guard?
REID: “I thought he (Kingsley Suamataia) did a nice job throughout the year. Got better every game and there was that stretch where we went against a lot of the good defenses and good defensive lines and we have another test here. These guys inside are – that front is pretty good. But he’s had a nice test against the best and he’s held up pretty good there.”
Q: What are you going to do next week?
REID: “You do the self-evaluation stuff and go back through that and we did it periodically throughout the season. We’ll hit on that then I jump into the personnel with (General Manager) Brett (Veach). He loads me up on that stuff.”
Q: On Chris Oladokun getting a full week of practice.
REID: “I thought he (Chris Oladokun) did a nice job handling everything and staying on top of it. We gave him a few more things this week so we’ll see how he handles that but I’m confident he’ll take care of it. He did well in practice with it. The challenge will be they’ve (Las Vegas Raiders) had a chance to look at him now, so it’ll be a nice test for him.”
Q: What have you seen from your young guys and your old guys getting ready for this final game?
REID: “They’ve been doing good, so I appreciate the old guys for not hanging their heads and kind of fighting through this thing and the young guys come with the veteran guys, that’s how it rolls.”
Q: Is it fair to say that you don’t expect Trey Smith or Xavier Worthy to play on Sunday?
REID: “Xavier (Worthy), we’ll have to see. He’s sick so we just have to see where he’s at, but Trey (Smith) won’t play.”
Q: How are you going to use this extra time in the offseason as a positive?
REID: “There’s plenty to work on so we’ll dive in and try to evaluate everything we possibly can and get it right. That’s what we’re going to do. It is what it is here but what we do is we work at the problems and make sure we fix them.”
Chiefs Player Quotes
January 2, 2026
RB BRASHARD SMITH
Q: How do you feel like you’ve improved this year?
SMITH: “I think I improved on just slowing down. I feel like I play pretty fast but just slowing down in my head I feel like I’ll be a way better player just slowing everything down in my head. Just being confident. I feel like if I’m confident I’ll be okay.”
Q: What do you think your position will be in the future, a wide receiver or a running back?
SMITH: “It doesn’t really matter to me. I feel like I’m an athlete (and) I could play anything the coach would want me to play. Just being available also at any position, I feel like that is a plus. I probably don’t just have one name, but it doesn’t matter to me, I like making plays.”
Q: What are your goals for the offseason?
SMITH: “Just getting bigger, stronger (and) actually look like a running back (chuckles). Just actually look like a running back but still play exactly how I play. That’s the biggest thing to me, just gaining weight and keeping my speed.”
LB JEFFREY BASSA
Q: What have you learned from this year that you can apply to next year?
BASSA: “I’m going to go back and look after this season and review on all the things that I did right and on all the things that I did bad and then where can I grow? That’s going to be looking in the mirror and taking a whole look at myself on where do I need to improve, where am I good right now, what do I need to change in my routine and what not when it comes to being in the season, OTA’s (and) having a full offseason. That’s going to be on me finally becoming a pro and then having to do that on my own, so I’m excited for that as well.”
Q: What was the most eye-opening experience you learned in your rookie year?
BASSA: “I wouldn’t say unexpected but when it comes to surprises, I would have to say the time management (and) being on your own. When it comes to the time off the field, I feel like I really did a good job of kind of sorting that out too – there’s time where you can spend time for your wellbeing and on your own like hanging out with your family or doing whatever you need to do, right? And then there are also times where you need to take care of your body outside of the facility as well. Where there’s days you’re off, if you play on a Thursday game you’re off for a couple of days. I think it would really have to be the time management piece when it comes to that. Just treating it like I always have and taking that process one day at a time.”
Q: On what he wants to improve on in the offseason.