KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid and players Mitchell Schwartz, Darwin Thompson, and Anthony Hitchens talked with the media during a training camp presser Wednesday. Following are their comments.
Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid
OPENING STATEMENT: “Just on the injured folks, the good news was that Juan Thornhill was back out there on a limited basis. We gave him some work and we’re just going to gradually ramp him up. Frank Clark is ill, he has a virus that he’s just trying to shake here, so we’re working with him on that. Then, Chris Jones has a slight strain in his groin, along with (Byron) Pringle with a hamstring. Really for the most part, everybody got out there, worked and did a good job with it. Some of the guys that didn’t, obviously were Thornhill and (Derrick) Nnadi who were both out there today, and (BoPete) Keyes was out there doing some work too. Then, (Antonio) Hamilton was limited on the work that he did. So, it was good to get the guys back out and going. Hard day at practice today. A lot of hours spent. I thought the guys did a nice job. The news of having fans in the stands – 22 percent capacity will be in there – and I just think that’s a tremendous thing for our city here moving forward. Just like the team and us getting together, there has to be a certain discipline that’s going to need to take place with the fans. I know they’ll be ready to do that as they already have been. My hat goes off to Mark Donovan and his crew for the job they did of getting things prepared, checking with the specialists and experts that are involved with it, and really giving our fans an opportunity – on a limited basis – to get themselves back in the stadium to continue to work ourselves back into normalcy in due time here. But again, it’s a good first step. With that, time’s yours.”
Q: How do you feel about your depth at cornerback now with Bashaud Breeland’s suspension, what young guys have caught your eye? And how does it feel to have Juan Thornhill back out there?
REID: “It’s good to have Thornhill back. He was limited today, but he’ll keep ramping up. He sure had a good couple workouts prior to getting activated again there, so we think that’s a plus. As far as the young corners, we’ll see. Time will tell here as we go, but we have a good nucleus of guys. It’ll all sort out here in the next couple of weeks. Everybody is working hard and getting a lot of reps, which is good, and we should be fine there.”
Q: Have you seen the spectacular throws from Patrick Mahomes enough to expect them when they happen?
REID: “I have seen it and my advantage is I know where the guys are going and kind of what the secondary is doing, so I can normally tell when it leaves his hand whether it’s good or bad. I trust him because he has tremendous vision and he makes good decisions. So, he’s not going to do something to hurt the team like throw interceptions – that’s just not his deal. When he moves, he’s aware of what’s going on, what the situation is in the game, which all become important – down and distance and obviously field position.”
Q: What gave you confidence that you would get cooperation from your players in the offseason in order to get this roster back, and what does it reveal about your group that you did?
REID: “It’s a good thing that we were able to get them back. You never know going into the offseason how that’s going to work out. Obviously, guys want to be here, but at the same time, Clark Hunt gave Brett (Veach) the opportunity to go get the guys, and I thought that was important. Brett and his crew, I thought, just did a heck of a job with it. Then, there’s a want-to. The guys want to be here, and they know they have an opportunity with hard work and working through the process to be a good football team.”
Q: Patrick Mahomes is evolving as he comes along, so do you have to evolve with him and maybe give him more options in the plays as he progresses?
REID: “I’m not sure we have one play that has one option, so normally there’s three of them and any time there’s three, it obviously keeps pressure on the defense as long as you’re reading it the right way, and normally it’s good versus just about everything. So, Pat has a good feel on that. He reads quickly and accurately. Listen, he’s blessed with great vision. That’s the thing I keep coming back to you with is he sees, and he has a mind that is decisive with decision making. For the young guys out there, kids that are trying to be quarterbacks, nobody works harder at it. Nobody studies more than he does. So, he’s blessed with this, but he also works tremendously hard at the job.”
Q: What have you seen from Nick Keizer so far in camp taking second-team reps behind Travis Kelce?
REID: “Nick has done a good job. He’s getting better every day. He’s a smart kid, tough kid, and he has a good mentor there with Trav, so he gets to see it done the right way. I’m asking all those guys, just try to get yourself better every day, work through it. We ask a lot out of that position within the run game and the pass game, and if you’re not focused in every day that you come out and disciplined, then you’re going to take a step backwards. So, they’ve done a good job with it—Nick being one of them there that I think is really working hard at getting himself to where he’s one of the guys.”
Q: What would be your pitch for Mike Holmgren to be in the Hall of Fame?
REID: “He kind of raised me in the business of the National Football League. At the time, I had a hard time believing anybody does it better. I’ve been a head coach for a couple years and I still feel the same way. He was phenomenal. The way he handled the players and management and us as coaches – nobody that I’ve been around has done it better than he did. So, he just had a good way about him, he’s brilliant, and there’s two of the three of them that are in the Hall of Fame – that strong triangle that we had with Ron Wolf and Brett Favre – and we need the other part of that to really make it whole.”
Q: What is the message to Mecole Hardman as he continues to grow and maintaining his desire to be more involved in the offense?
REID: “He’s coming in with the right frame of mind. He worked his tail off in the offseason and he’s working hard now. He understands all that, but he keeps working and getting opportunities. He had a couple great snaps today. He was learning last year, but now it’s fit in. He’s in a group of guys that can play – D-Rob (Demarcus Robinson) is another one who probably doesn’t get the ball enough that is very worthy of it – but again, there is one ball and they understand it and we kind of check our egos at the door and we roll the best we can, and we keep it fast and furious. So, that’s how they’ve handled it. I’ve been pleased with Mecole and how he’s gone about his job.”
Q: How comfortable are you with the current depth at the tight end position, and what’s it like having WR Marcus Kemp back?
REID: “I’m okay with the tight end situation as long as we keep growing. Marcus—having him back is great. He’s a great kid and I’m so glad that he’s back now because he was playing the best football that he had ever played since we’ve had him here when he got hurt. It was a shame that happened and now he’s getting a chance to come back. It looks like he’s worked his tail off. We worked him out yesterday and he did a great job with it. So, he needs to get himself into football shape as he goes, but he took some reps today and did a nice job with it, and we’ll just see how it goes. But we need depth at that position, you know that, there and the secondary because they do quite a little bit of running.”
Q: With no preseason games and guys going all-out in practice in order to make the team, is there a message to keep your key guys safe?
REID: “We always try to do that because you can be a great coach, but if you don’t have your players – we’re all in it together. So, we try to keep bodies off the ground and do those things that are important. Play hard and play fast, but we’re not taking cheap shots on each other, we’re not doing that. We’re trying to stay away from collisions on the back end, bodies on the ground with the bigs and that. If you just watch our veterans practice, they kind of know how to do it. So, I tell the young guys that, ‘see how they do it, they’re moving like crazy, but you don’t see guys flopping around on the ground.’”
Q: For you as an offensive guy, what kind of challenges does a versatile guy like Tyrann Mathieu present, and how does he help Steve Spagnuolo make up for being down a few guys in the secondary?
REID: “We’re using Tyrann at a couple of different spots, but he easily could play corner – not that we’re doing that – but he has that kind of coverage ability. So, when a guy comes in to play that position outside, he knows exactly what that guy has to do to work in that spot and he’s able to communicate with him, and he does that quite a bit. You hear him out there talking and he knows everything that’s going on. He’s got a full understanding of what Spags wants – he’s really an extension of Spags on the field – and for Steve that becomes so important to have that guy. So, he’s able to kind of get everything right in the secondary, plus he’s got great instincts at the safety position and nickel position. He just knows how to do that, and he has great anticipation. He’s very football-aware on things. Sharp kid.”
Q: Over the years, what have you identified that ensures you get the maximum effort from guys in training camp so that they’re ready for the regular season?
REID: “Normally if guys practice fast, they stay relatively healthy. It’s when somebody is not doing that and then somebody trips over somebody and falls down and then you’ve got a problem. Over the years, you see those things happen. So, it’s important that guys are moving and trying to move at the same speed. Then, it gets you prepared. We don’t condition after practice – that’s not what we’re doing. We’re not lining up and running sprints, so I ask them to condition during practice and we’ll keep you watered down. So, we’re not playing the ‘no-water’ game, we try to keep them hydrated and ready to go. But we know in games you have to be ready – no more important than this year. I mean, you have to go into a game without any preseason games, so you have to keep your tempo up and get yourself sharp. The guys believe that and so they fly around. They remind each other, which is important, and so the coaches don’t really have to do it. The players can give each other a heads up on ‘let’s go – it’s time to roll, you’re a little tired, let’s go.’”
T MITCHELL SCHWARTZ
Q: Could you sense, for lack of a better word, fuel in training camp coming off the AFC loss and how would you compare or contrast the mood or vibe of training camp this year?
SCHWARTZ: “No I didn’t really feel that last year. I feel like the work is pretty consistent, it actually feels like it’s more ramped up this year whether that’s guys eager to play with COVID and not being able to have OTA’s and stuff or whether it’s feeling the urgency of what we need to do to come off as defending champs and knowing we’re going to get everyone’s best shot, but I mean, this year guys are flying around, there’s a lot of good competition, obviously got a stacked roster so you’re going against someone who’s almost at the best at their position pretty much every play so it makes things pretty difficult.”
Q: I was wondering after some padded practices, if there were any differences in blocking running backs like Clyde Edwards-Helaire that you didn’t previously have?
SCHWARTZ: “Yeah I couldn’t tell you which plays he was in and which he wasn’t. Those guys rotate through and we just get locked in on our job and I think the awesome thing we’ve seen in why guys are so successful in this offense is with EB (Eric Bieniemy) and Coach (Deland) McCullough, they’re teaching them so detail oriented with the backs and what to do, so it could be any one of the however many backs we have on the roster, they’re all coming in, taught the same thing, the foot works the same, its consistent, it’s the same timing. I mean our job is hard enough trying to move guys and try to figure out what the defense is and who we got to block and if you had to say ‘oh Clyde’s in on this one, we got to do this special difference,’ that just doesn’t work, so that’s not something we really focus on. We kind of do our job, hope they make us look good obviously and yeah I mean, the cool thing with him, we all saw him in college, it’s really awesome to watch and all that fun. Typically in the first preseason game or two you’re able to kind of see those moves in real action, but obviously we wont get to see that this year so it’ll be fun to see when we’re able to get to real football.”
Q: Can you explain what you would normally work on and try to get out of in a typical preseason and how that can be transferred to a practice? Since the Super Bowl, what have you thought as the most impressive thing you’ve seen from Patrick Mahomes as far as getting the team ready and getting himself ready for the next level for the season?
SCHWARTZ: “For training camp I think you want to keep doing what you do at a high level. I mean, number one you kind of lose your core and your base, I mean that’s something when I talk to young linemen, I got into a spell when I was young like ‘hey this guy does that, this guy sets like this, this guy does his hands this way and I tried everything, I wasn’t very good with it and I realized I needed to figure out what works for me. Kind of want to make sure, you know, going with a cooking analogy, you got a nice chef’s knife that you like, make sure that knife is polished and sharp, then you can start branching off and using other knifes and so using different pass sets or different change up sets, things of that nature, that’s where you really want to work and get comfortable with things that aren’t your bread and butter. You kind of progress through camp and try to add more tools because just like a defensive lineman, a guy who only has one great pass rush, eventually you kind of figure it out. As a lineman, if you only got one pass set, eventually they kind of time it and figure it out, so it’s working to expand that, working out of your comfort zone, really honing in on that. To me that’s what training camp is about – its weirdly a time to fail. I mean, we’ve heard Pat (Mahomes) talk about throwing interceptions and knowing what the limits are, things of that nature. It’s the same for us. I mean we have to know our limits, we have to know what works and what doesn’t. Getting to Pat, I mean seems like he was all over the place this offseason, I know he’s got a lot of obligations and everyone wants a piece of him, but he comes in, he’s in phenomenal shape, flinging the ball around, tons of energy, backing up the play calls and he’s getting them out with ease. You can just tell wherever he’s been, his mind was on football and he’s coming in looking really sharp, and its exciting.”
Q: Do you work any reps at Left Tackle and if you don’t, do you feel comfortable if asked to play there in an emergency? Where is your mindset in the security and safety of being in the trenches this upcoming season?
SCHWARTZ: “To the first part, I don’t take too many left side stuff, but its always there. You never know in an emergency if Fish (Eric Fisher) goes down, the next tackle goes down, we’re kind of left with five guys so I got to always be ready to go to any position really to be honest. That’s something as linemen, we always talk about, the concept of a play within a play, but also goes to being able to play any different position. I mean a guy gets hurt, you got to switch sides, so you always got to be ready. In terms of playing against other people, I mean the idea of – I mean I know the Chiefs have done a phenomenal job in terms of all the safety regulations, guys taking it serious, doing the right thing in the building and outside the building and so I can only imagine other teams are doing similar – across the league seems like the numbers are doing really well. Like you said it’s kind of inevitable you’re going to get face to face, there’s going to be breathe particles that could come your way and I think you just got to have trust in the other team and the other guy that they’re doing the right thing. We’re doing testing every day, we’ve seen that get extended, seems like hopefully soon enough there’s some day of testing potentially for game situations, but trusting that the teams have done everything on their part and we’re doing everything individually when you do get to the game, you’re going against a guy whose done his part.”
Q: What sets Chris Jones and Frank Clark apart from other duos around the league and what do you have to do as a right tackle knowing you have an elite pass rusher on the other side of you?
SCHWARTZ: “The thing I first think of with those guys is, their get off, their quickness, I mean Chris is, for being as massive as he is, he’s got as good as a get off as anybody. I mean Aaron Donald’s crazy quick too, but for Chris to be doing it at however much he weighs, its insane. It’s not really fair. In practice he times it up pretty good on us and he’s just so naturally powerful. You’ve seen him play throughout his career and guys will say, ‘he plays too high, he plays too high’. It’s like yeah he can because he’s still launching guys playing that high. Most guys need to get a lower pad level, better leverage or whatever, but he’s so strong, he’s able to do things from a different position than guys are used to, so if you’re to get that same bull rush, but you’re not leaning quite as much that allows you to work the hands moves. We’ve seen him be so deadly with those, and so he’s got freaky athleticism and strength combined with a really refined pass rush ability. Frank, going against him, the thing is he just gets on you so fast in terms of stride length. He’s just so explosive, those first two steps just feel like he’s already by you essentially and then with his change in direction, he’s able to spin, he’s able to counter back inside. A guy like that, people always kind of wonder, he’s not the hugest D-End but a guys his size is moving that fast with that much explosive ability, he’s got a ton of power too so you don’t really know how to defend him because boom he’s by you. So, you over step that he’s inside and you try to play both of that and you’re on your heels and he’s right through you so you kind of feel helpless honestly and its not the greatest feeling as a tackle.”
RB DARWIN THOMPSON
Q: How do you feel camp is going for you so far and what were your thoughts when the Chiefs drafted a first rounder at your position?
THOMPSON: “Competition breeds excellence. Camp’s going good for me so far, year two for me. Here to get better in camp. Last year in camp, eyes were wide open like a deer in headlights, so this year I know what to expect and to perfect my craft. Drafting Clyde (Edwards-Helaire) was a great addition to the room. We needed somebody with a different type of talent and just helps me work on my game, helps other running backs work on their game.”
Q: What were the conversations like and the messages from Deland McCullough when you got to training camp?
THOMPSON: “Keep working. That was the only thing he told me, keep working. Just keep working. Last year I was timid to the league itself. I didn’t really play my game or play Darwin Thompson’s play. I didn’t play to my par, so this year I’m coming back perfecting my craft.”
Q: What did you do back in Tulsa to stay in shape and what has it been like getting to know Clyde Edwards-Helaire and the competition?
THOMPSON: “It’s a cool competition because we all at one point were doubted in our career because we share that same story. I’m glad that he’s a 5-8 running back getting drafted in the first round. When I went back home, I got back to the nitty gritty of my training. I was in Arizona being pampered a little too much, so when I went back home I was working on my football work with my pops, where it all started for me and I think that prepared me most for this training camp and I’m ready to show what I’ve been doing.”
Q: You mentioned you’re eyes being opened wide last year, what do you know now that you didn’t know then and how much of that information are you giving to Clyde?
THOMPSON: “I like to keep the battlefields equal. If me and Clyde are both on the battlefield, I want him to have a pistol and I’m going to have a pistol and we’re going to let the best man win. I’m not too much of holding secrets or how I got better last year as a rookie from people, so I try help as much as I can. This year I see the blitzes a lot better. I can recognize the disguises that the safeties put on as far as cap, slots and things like that. The run game I see a lot better, a lot over this offseason I was watching and studying other running backs as far as their eyes and how they see the run game, three technique shades and understanding different fronts of a defense. I did a lot of studying this offseason. There were a lot of things I had to get better at for me to be successful in this league.”
Q: Can you elaborate on where you are as far as pass protection at this point?
THOMPSON: “It wasn’t too much of actually picking up the blitz because I’m not afraid of contact, it was seeing and recognizing where the blitz is coming from, safeties, as far as they roll in the sky, we got some of the best safety’s in the game. Tyrann Mathieu disguises really well so me seeing and hearing in practice once we come to game time, I’ll be able to see it. Last year, I felt like I could barely see over the line of scrimmage, the O-Linemen were so big, I didn’t see linebackers or things like that. The game felt so fast but now I’m in the film room and see it, I see it every day. I watch film everyday so when I hit the field, boom my eyes go there now. I can expect who’s going to come, what down and distance it is. I just got tabs in my head every play or each play of what I’m going to be looking at.”
LB ANTHONY HITCHENS
Q: As one of the leaders in the linebacker room, I’m curious about Ben Niemann. After two years and then a few padded practices this year, what have you seen from him that makes you believe he could have a bigger role on the defense this year?
HITCHENS: “He’s improving every day. He’s smart. He knows the defense. He knows multiple positions. He has the opportunity and he’s taking advantage of it right now. He’s been making plays all over during camp. He had a pick-six today in camp. He’s had some TFLs. He’s been in his books studying and growing as a player. He’s still young. He’s only going into year three, but he’s making a huge jump this year already.”
Q: What was your reaction to seeing Juan Thornhill back for the first time in a long time?
HITCHENS: “It was definitely good to see Juan back out there. You could see he was smiling from ear to ear, finally getting to move around with us and stuff like that. Kudos to him for putting in all the work and getting back here not even a full year from the injury. Good for our training staff and for Juan for putting in all the work, while everybody else had an offseason, he was still grinding. Good things happen to good people that work hard. He’s moving forward, and I’m looking forward to having him back out there soon.”
Q: How are you guys maintaining the edge that prompted you guys to win the Super Bowl last year?
HITCHENS: “Every year, we just restart, we start back at ground zero. It’s a whole new edge to do it again, and again, and again, and again. There’s only one goal when you’re playing at this level and that’s to win a Super Bowl. Anything else is not acceptable. Every year you just restart and try it again. You have a new edge every year. You restart all over and the edge is to get back there again.”
Q: How do you advise the rookies to bridge between making a name for themselves and putting a player out?
HITCHENS: “Yeah, I don’t think you make the team by hitting your own teammates or knocking players out of practice and stuff. What I teach the young guys in our room is to just learn the playbook. You have to build that trust with your coach. Your coach has to trust you in order to put you out there on the field. Whatever you present, you present you and your coach, not just yourself. What I teach the young guys is learn the plays in your book, so when you get out there, you know what to do. Then, you can get coached on technique and what you were supposed to do on this play. As long as you get lined up and know your job, you can build that trust with your position coach and the defensive coordinator.”
Q: What is your reaction to the idea of fans being able to watch you guys to start this season? How can you guys as a defense still play at a high level, without having one of the guys who was key to your success last year for the first couple of games?
HITCHENS: “It’s next guy in. Coach Reid talks about it all the time and that’s the mentality that we have and we’re going to build around it. We’ll probably have different types of calls just because it’s probably going to be a younger type guy in there. We are playing at a high level and we have these practices. They’re finding these different guys to rotate. It’s going to take more than just one guy to play at that position. We need to play better as a team, and we can’t rely on just one position. I think we’ve been doing that all through camp. You see different guys making plays, different guys making checks and stuff like that. We just need to pick each other up when we lose a guy or two. It’s a blessing that the Chiefs put together a great format for us with the families being able to come and some of the fans. The way we practice and the way we separate and work on our social distancing. I can’t speak for every team or organization, but I know that we’re doing it the right way here. I think everything should pan out as long as everyone keeps doing their responsibility of being safe.”
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