Chiefs wrap 2022 training camp | KCSN Daily 8.18
Plus injury updates, social media roundup and a big KCSN announcement.
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The Chiefs have officially wrapped their 2022 training camp at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri. The final practice session was a light day of work, with players practicing in shells in front of a military crowd for “Military Appreciation Day.” To demonstrate just how serious this practice session was, there was a team period where quarterbacks threw fades to other quarterbacks in the red zone.
As camp wraps for the year, Patrick Mahomes felt the team was better off now compared to when they arrived in St. Joe.
“Yeah, I think we took a giant step as far as how we do things,” Mahomes said. “I mean, we have the talent, we’ve got the guys who can go out there and make the plays. Like (Head) Coach (Andy) Reid runs a tough training camp, it’s kind of what we’ve been known for, I think it’s better for it. I think guys, as we went on, understood that and they came out with the mindset that they were going to compete every single day. And you saw offense had good days and defense had good days and that usually is a sign for a good football team.”
Andy Reid echoed these sentiments, adding that training camp went by quickly this year because everyone bought in and followed the lead of players like Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Chris Jones and Frank Clark. That leadership, accountability and desire to be great are what will help push this team to new heights in 2022.
Training camp injury/absence updates:
8/18 - OT Lucas Niang (knee) remains on the active/PUP list.
8/18 - TE Blake Bell (hip flexor) missed his fourth consecutive practice.
8/18 - WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (sore knee) missed his third consecutive practice.
8/17 - DT Chris Jones (sore back) missed practice.
8/17 - WR Mecole Hardman (groin) missed practice.
8/18 - LS James Winchester (personal) and RB Jerick McKinnon (hamstring) returned to practice.
Andy Reid on injuries: “Mecole has a groin spasm. It’s getting better. We’ll see about playing. Chris Jones has back spasms, we’ll see about playing there. He is getting better. Blake we’ve talked about. Lucas Niang you know about. And Smith-Schuster, you know about. JuJu is making progress with his knee. . . I don’t think JuJu will probably play (in) this game. . . I think there is a good chance (that he’ll be back in practice next week).”
Quotable:
“Yeah, it’s going to be an exciting opportunity for them. You saw guys like Skyy (Moore) and Justin Watson who kind of made plays when they came in this first preseason with Shane (Buechele) and Chad (Henne). For them to make plays there, they’re obviously going to get more reps with me in this game. I’m interested to see how they maximize that opportunity, but I mean they’ve been doing it at practice, making the plays at practice and doing everything the right way. For them to get in there and get some opportunity to run with the ones, I think it’ll help us out in the long run whenever we do get those guys back, having a good group of guys that can go in at any time.” - Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes on opporunities amidst receiver injuries
“Chris Jones. I mean he was dominant. He’s the first one that I think of, and I think it’ll be the same with Chris this year, from what I saw it was the run and the pass. I mean he was down there dominating stuff, making tackles on run game just as much as he was getting to the quarterback and getting around me, affecting how I threw the ball. I thought some of the receivers had great camps. I thought Noah Gray had a great camp, making stuff happen. I thought Jody (Fortson), up until the injury, but he was having a great camp and I thought (he) kind of bounced back as he got back involved so I think a lot of guys had great camps out here. You expect guys like Chris, Travis (Kelce), all (of) them to have great camps but seeing the other guys have great camps is always a good thing.” - Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes on the players who had a strong camp
KCSN Foundation Announcement:
Like golf? Find out more about the KCSN Foundation and our Charity Golf Tournament in Bonner Springs, Kansas coming this October.
Social media roundup:
Important dates ahead:
Saturday, Aug. 20 - Preseason Week 2: Chiefs vs. Commanders - 3:00 p.m. CT - Kansas City, Missouri at Arrowhead Stadium
Tuesday, Aug. 23 - Roster cuts wave 2 - 85 to 80 players
Thursday, Aug. 25 - Preseason Week 3: Chiefs vs. Packers - 7:00 p.m. CT - Kansas City, Missouri at Arrowhead Stadium
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