Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid Quotes
October 3, 2024
HEAD COACH ANDY REID
OPENING STATEMENT: “As far as the guys not practicing today, Rashee’s (Rice) really the only one. Rashee’s situation is (that) we’re getting the swelling out of his knee and then he’s going to have further tests next week, so (I) really don’t have anything to tell you from there. We’ll see how these tests go next week and once the swelling’s out of there. Congratulations to the Royals, first. What a great job they’ve done to this point, and I know they’re fired up to keep on going. I know we’re all glad to have them coming back here and having another chance to see them play. With that, we look forward to the challenge of playing the Saints. (They’re) a good football team (and they’re) well coached. I mean, (Saints Head Coach) Dennis (Allen) does a nice job with that group. Their coordinators – all three of them do a nice job with their phases and we’ve just got to make sure that we have a good week of preparation here going forward. Then, just on the business side of it, Clyde (Edwards-Helaire), you saw was elevated. He’s got a 21-day window. We’ll just get him back into the swing of things here and see how he does going forward here (in) the next couple of days. Anyways, with that, the time’s yours.”
Q: Is there any more of a sense of optimism with Rashee Rice than there was a few days ago?
REID: “I think it’s just ‘wait and see,’ is where we’re at. For his (Rashee Rice) sake, we’re really hoping that things work out for the best. Let’s just see where it goes and leave it up to the doctors to see. I’m definitely not a doctor.”
Q: What are the plans for Clyde Edwards-Helaire going forward?
REID: “We’ll practice him (Clyde Edwards-Helaire) today, with the scout team (and) give him some reps there and let him just kind of get back into the swing of things. He’s in good shape. He’s been working out so just get him back in the football part.”
Q: Are you close to getting Charles Omenihu back to practice?
REID: “I think that’ll be a little bit here.”
Q: What sorts of things are you seeing offensively when you say that you’re close?
REID: “Just getting rid of the penalties and those self-inflicted wounds – turnovers, penalties. Those hurt you at this level. You’ve got to take care of that, and I’ve got to make sure that I’m putting the guys in the right position to do the right things. I think the coaches would tell you the same thing with that and that’s where we’re at but it’s close. We’ve just got to keep rolling.”
Q: How much does not having Rashee Rice change things schematically for Monday night’s game?
REID: “Listen, Rashee’s (Rice) had a phenomenal year. Unfortunately, in this league, injuries happen, and life goes on. We’ve always expected the next guys to step up and roll and it’s no different now. There’s not another Rashee (but) there’s other guys though that are very, very good, so we’ll be fine.”
Q: Regarding all of the injuries, have you experienced this before to start a season?
REID: “Yeah, I’m sure I have. I’ve been doing this a long time, there’s been injuries that have taken place. I don’t really dwell on them Nate (Taylor), I just kind of move on and go and wish the best of the kids most of all. We’ll take care of business, (General Manager Brett) Veach has done a good job of bringing people in here and depth and that, so (we) just have to take care of business.”
Q: How is Saints QB Derek Carr doing and how is he fitting into the offense?
REID: “He’s (Saints QB Derek Carr) doing a very nice job. He’s always been a good player and that’s not a question from our standpoint on that part. They’re doing a good job of protecting him and he’s doing a good job of delivering it to their receivers and they’ve got good skill players there and (a) good running back who’s also involved in the pass game and the run game. He’s done a very nice job.”
Q: What did Saints S Tyrann Mathieu mean to the Chiefs when he was here and what have you seen from him in these past three years?
REID: “Phenomenal player (Saints S Tyrann Mathieu). I’ll vote for him for the Hall of Fame going forward – I don’t have a vote but I would vote for him. He’s a tremendous leader, he actually makes this his home here so I think when he’s done, he’ll probably come back here. Great kid, great player, brings a lot of energy.”
Q: On Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
REID: “Again, the doctors are monitoring him (Clyde Edwards-Helaire). He’s doing good, yeah, to answer your question, he’s doing good. He’s in all the meetings and that, he’s heading in the right direction. We just have to see on that, I think time is a big part of that, we’ll see how that goes.”
Q: On Jawaan Taylor’s penalties.
REID: “He’s (Jawaan Taylor) got to fix those, I mean he’s got to fix those, that’s the bottom line. He’s very quick off of the ball and he takes a lot of pride in that, but you can’t be – you have to make sure that you’re not offsides. He’s got to take care of that part, he will.”
Chiefs Player Quotes
QB PATRICK MAHOMES
Q: On the play that Rashee Rice got hurt, did you notice how hard you got hit?
MAHOMES: “No, I didn’t notice it in the moment. I was more worried about trying to get the ball. Obviously, I was just trying to make a play, and it happens whenever you’re trying to make tackles.”
Q: What did you think when you saw the replay?
MAHOMES: “When I saw the replay I felt (bad) that I hit Rashee (Rice). I think that’s pretty much all – I wasn’t really worried about myself. I was worried about his injury and hopefully that it wasn’t as bad as it looked because I was the one that hit him.”
Q: What did Saints S Tyrann Mathieu mean to you guys in the locker room when he was here?
MAHOMES: “I think just – me being a young player, especially when he (Saints S Tyrann Mathieu) got here, just seeing that type of leader I think was something that I will forever remember. The way he inspired guys, the energy that he played with – obviously he is a great football player everybody can see that, but he is truly a great leader, one of the best leaders I’ve ever been around. He pushed to get the best out of everybody every single day, he treated practice like games, he tried to get better every single day and that’s something that has helped me become who I am. A great football player, man. I’m hoping that he gets out there, not for me and my sake because he’s a great football player and always around the ball, but I think Kansas City getting to see him come back and be on that field again would be special for the city.”
Q: Were there some traits from him that you could pick up early in your career?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, you sit there and watch those guys – I watched him (Saints S Tyrann Mathieu) when he was in college and he dominated college football and then getting into the NFL and all the great plays that he had made and then being able to see him on a day-to-day basis – you want to see those guys that are the top of the top and how they prepare every single day, and he was one of those guys that you knew why he was great when you saw him practice and how he went about his business.”
Q: You talked about how you guys will have to rely on Travis Kelce more without Rashee Rice on Monday, just curious about JuJu Smith-Schuster and Justin Watson and your rapport with them and how big they now become?
MAHOMES: “Those guys are always the guys that do it the right way. They are always in the right position, they do what they are supposed to do – get guys lined up – and I think having those guys is a luxury because you know that they’re going to be there, they’re going to get open and they’re going to make plays when their numbers are called. I think (General Manager) Brett Veach did a great job of continuing to build within that receiver room. Obviously, not expecting to have these two kind of big injuries early in the year in that receiving room but having the support of the guys to come in and step up and make plays whenever those guys aren’t in there.”
Q: Speaking of JuJu Smith-Schuster, when the Chiefs bring back a player who had been here previously, how much are they able to hit the ground running?
MAHOMES: “They always have a good feel for our main stuff, our base concept stuff. Every year in the offseason (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid adds new stuff and the offensive coaches look around at what we can do better, so they have to learn some of that type of stuff, but I think you’ve seen with the guys that we’ve brought back is its guys that are very intelligent, they’re able to pick up the offense quickly. When stuff like this last game happens, you can throw JuJu (Smith-Schuster) in there and he can run some of those routes that Rashee (Rice) has, and he can even be in different positions maybe that he didn’t practice all week because he prepares the right way and he’s ready for his moment.”
Q: Injuries are part of the game, but you guys have been hit pretty hard so far this year offensively. What’s the difficulty for you and adjusting to a lineup that is seemingly different every week?
MAHOMES: “Once the week goes on and you go through your gameplan, it’s usually pretty smooth because you have an understanding of the guys and what we’re trying to do in the concepts of the plays. During the games sometimes, especially how it happened this last game early where, obviously, Rashee’s (Rice) a huge part of the game plan, you have to kind of throw guys in there and make that timing up. (Head) Coach (Andy Reid) tries to get that done in practice. He tries to throw guys in certain situations, but obviously, there’s limited reps. I thought the guys did a great job of accepting the challenge and being in there in those moments. Coach Reid does a great job of getting guys prepared and ready to go throughout a week of gameplan, and we had an extra day this week, so, I’m sure guys will be ready to go out there and play some great football.”
Q: On facing Saints Head Coach Dennis Allen’s defense.
MAHOMES: “I think just – (Saints Head Coach Dennis Allen is) a very intelligent coach. I mean, (he’s) someone that does a lot of different things. He’s a gameplan specific coach. Someone that – it’s not all about his defense. He looks at the offenses and what they do best (and) he tries to take those away and he’s really good at it. He’ll throw changeups in there (that) you might have not seen the entire season or in his past because he thinks this might work this week. It’ll be a great challenge for us. They’re a physical team, they play extremely fast and they have a lot of great players and veteran players so they can kind of get away with stuff because they know what they can and can’t get away with, so you’ve got to make sure that you’re really on top of every single check at the line of scrimmage and prepared for everything whenever you step to the football.”
Q: What did that big play to Xavier Worthy on Sunday do for the receiver’s confidence and the whole offense?
MAHOMES: “I mean, whenever you hit those deep passes, it kind of opens everything up because defenses have to have more and more respect for any ability to score on one play. It was big in that game. I mean they were starting to get more and more downhill because we were running the ball, and we weren’t moving it and throwing it vertically. When we were able to hit that deep one, it kind of opened up the offense at least a little bit and our goal is to continue to show that we can do that on a week-to-week basis and even more than one time a game. There were more opportunities in that game to go downfield, so I have to continue to push the ball down the field so that it opens up everyone else underneath.”
Q: How long does it normally take for you to build chemistry with a new guy?
MAHOMES: “It depends on every receiver. I think we have a lot of intelligent receivers in this receiving room right now, so I feel like we’re all seeing the field the same way. Now, it’s about me just having that trust and giving them the shots to make plays in traffic and stuff like that. Like I did with Xavier (Worthy) on that deep one, there were more opportunities to throw even to him later on in that game. Just continuing, for myself, to give him those chances to go out there and make plays and be the receiver that he is and that goes throughout the entire receiving room, the tight end room and the running back room.”
Q: What’s your excitement level for the Kansas City Royals playoff success and them coming back in town to play?
MAHOMES: “It’s awesome. I mean, it’s great for the city. I’ve heard all the stories of how awesome the environment was the last time they were in the playoffs and they’re going to go up against a great baseball team in the (New York) Yankees – historic baseball team. I’m excited for these guys. They’re hungry, they’re playing great baseball right now and then to be at the K (Kauffman Stadium) – a sold-out crowd hopefully and I get to see that October baseball there is going to be special.”
Q: Known New York Yankees fan and former Chiefs receiver Gehrig Dieter may be sniffing around you for tickets, is that appropriate for someone like that?
MAHOMES: “Yeah, I’ll let him (former receiver Gehrig Dieter) be there because then when we hopefully win, I’ll get to talk trash. No, it’s a – he’s a big (New York) Yankees fan. I think if the Yankees lost this series, he might have to move cities so let’s see if we can do that for him (laughter).”
Q: Have you ever been to a postseason baseball game?
MAHOMES: “I’ve been to a postseason baseball game. Back when I was in high school, the (Texas) Rangers made the World Series a couple of times and so I got to see them lose I think Game 5 against the (San Francisco) Giants one year and then I watched them lose – or maybe win the game that I was at, when they went up against the (Philadelphia) Phillies and they ended up losing Game 6 and that ball on the warning track. I’ve had some close heartbreaks there with the Rangers, but the (Kansas City) Royals are going to turn it around for me.”
DE GEORGE KARLAFTIS
Q: Can you talk about the defense this year? You guys seem to be off to a great start.
KARLAFTIS: “We’d (the defense) like to start games just a little better than we have. Just those first couple drives and whatnot but you know, (I’m) just proud of us sticking together and finishing it out when we need to.”
Q: With the way that the Saints are executing on first and second down, how important is it to get them to third and long?
KARLAFTIS: “(Laughs) It’s critical, you know. It’s going to be a huge task for us. That’ll be one of the keys to the game, if you will. You have to try to stop them on first and second down to get them into those passing situations.”
Q: What kind of season is Chris Jones having?
KARLAFTIS: “He’s (Chris Jones) having a great season. He’s doing everything. He’s playing the run; he’s getting after it in the pass rush. He makes my job a lot easier when I play next to him, too. He’s off to a great start. I’ve never been shy to say I think he’s the best defensive lineman (and) interior defensive lineman in the game. He’s off to a great start again.”