Chiefs Quotes: 9-19-24

September 19, 2024

ASSISTANT HEAD COACH/SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR DAVE TOUB

Q: What can special teams do for Jaden Hicks down the road?

TOUB: “He’s (Jaden Hicks) in a lot of key spots for us right now. He’s our PP (personal protector) on punt which he’s making all the calls and he’s also the Mike on punt returns. He’s responsible if a team ran a fake to be able to stop that just like we used (Former Chiefs Safety Daniel) Sorensen in the past so he’s in a lot of key roles for us and it’s going to help him develop as a safety learning football instincts and the speed of the game. He gets better and better each week. He doesn’t make the same mistake twice that’s what I’m really happy about having him.”

Q: Regarding roster decisions, how much direct contact do you have with General Manager Brett Veach?

TOUB: “A lot, yeah, we talk about it. You know, he comes to my office, we talk about it – (Head Coach) Andy (Reid), we get on a three-way call, like early on Monday, we talk about all of that stuff.”

Q: How much better has Matt Araiza gotten already?

TOUB: “Yeah, he’s (Matt Araiza) only had five punts so far in two games but his first game with the three punts, he had two touchbacks and then he had come up with the third punt which was a great punt the 4.94 that we tackled for a two-yard gain. This game he only had two and the goal this past week was no touchbacks, and he did that. Then, Josh (Williams) made a great play on the goal line obviously knocking that ball back for us, that was a huge play. The combination of him hanging the ball up and then the coverage getting down there doing their job, it’s going to make his job that much easier. He did make an improvement from game one to game two.”

OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR MATT NAGY

Q: On the Ravens and Bengals defending Rashee Rice differently.

NAGY: “Every week is probably going to be a little bit different, with him (Rashee Rice) and these players (that) we have and that’s a good thing. We like the way that they’re playing, they’re playing fast. I think it’s the – the biggest part of the process is going to be us just being able to – us, as coaches – being able to make sure that we try to get them open in different ways and then the players adjusting.”

Q: How does losing Isiah Pacheco for a while change the operation for you guys?

NAGY: “It’s certainly a little bit different but that’s expected. Pop (Isiah Pacheco) is doing a good job recovering and part of this game is injuries, but we know how much he wanted to be out there. For us, football-wise, and the x’s and o’s part, I think the guys that we have here now have really been able to get a chance to be in this offense (and) get some valuable reps – whether it be at training camp or (in) preseason. Now, it’s the next man up mentality. You guys (the media) know who the guys are that are here and for us, the biggest thing is just making sure that we put them in optimum situations and probably don’t try to do too much, one way or the other with any of them. Understand too that this is going to be – it’s a little new to these guys and that’s okay. We just help them through the process but there’s also a lot of excitement for them, too.”

Q: What are the challenges of the Falcons defense?

NAGY: “Well, I just think they (the Falcons defense) play hard. They really play hard. They’re a defense that they keep a lot of things in front of them. You saw that game the other night with Philadelphia, and they did a really good job of tackling, they’re physical (and) they understand the scheme. It’s a great scheme that they have, and they’ve got good football players. For us, the biggest thing is how do we play fast? Then, understand they’re a good football team. It’s obviously a primetime game so they’ll be juiced up, we’ll be juiced up, but I think (Falcons Head) Coach (Raheem) Morris has done a great job and their defense, in general, and he always has.”

DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR STEVE SPAGNUOLO

OPENING STATEMENT: “Okay, we’re ready to go. On to the next one. They don’t get any easier. We’ve got another tough opponent but with that, I’m just going to open it up.”

Q: How quickly do you feel like you’ll be able to get Cameron Thomas and Marlon Tuipulotu up to speed and in the game?

SPAGNUOLO: “We’re getting there. We talk about it every week. (General Manager) Brett (Veach) always comes in and asks, and (Defensive Line Coach) Joe’s (Cullen) been – Joe and (Assistant Defensive Line Coach) Terry (Bradden) have spent a lot of extra time with both Cam (Cameron Thomas) and Marlon (Tuipulotu) and they’re both great about it. I mean, they’re the first guys in here. They’re chomping at the bit to get in there and we’ll see where that goes. It’d be nice to get more than eight (defensive linemen) but there’s only so many numbers, so we’ll see what happens.”

Q: What stands out about the way Chris Jones influences the game?

SPAGNUOLO: “He’s (Chris Jones) attracting a lot of double teams right now. You guys (the media) have probably done your film study so you can see that, right? Yeah, he does. I mean, we try as much as we can to get him on one person, but that’s hard to do. People tend not to let that happen. One of the things we probably need to do a better job of is get into some longer third downs. I was sharing with the (defensive) unit this morning that, if I did my math right, I think we’ve only had 19 third-and-two plus (situations). That’s really not enough in the game. That’s only nine and a half a game, but that means you have to play better on first and second down. That’s where this team (Atlanta Falcons) is going to become really challenging because we know they run the ball really well.”

Q: What characteristics do you have to have to be a blitzer in your defense?

SPAGNUOLO: “When I do evaluate DB’s and linebackers as well, I’m always looking for guys that can blitz. I’ll tell you one thing that I always look at is a vertical jump because I just think that signifies explosive traits. Chamarri (Conner) has a – it’s over 40, I don’t know exactly (how high)– he’d know exactly what it is, and they all know exactly (laughter) – but that’s one thing I do like, guys that can go from a standstill to really fast to me are the guys that are the best blitzers. Trent (McDuffie) can do it, Chamarri’s done it, LJ (Tennessee Titans CB L’Jarius Sneed) used to do it, we have a lot of guys that can do it. Some guys have to time it up and be moving forward, other guys can go (snaps) from a standstill.”

OFFENSIVE LINE COACH ANDY HECK

Q: What was your assessment of Kingsley Suamataia’s second half?

HECK: “In the second half, he (Kingsley Suamataia) had a couple breakdowns in technique, and he had one or two mental errors there. I think it was earlier in the game that those occurred, but stuff that he was able to look at, we’re able to make corrections in our meeting and stuff he’s working on this week.”

Q: Are these some of the growing pains that come with putting a rookie at left tackle?

HECK: “Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I think every rookie will go through those ups and downs. Let’s not forget who he’s (Kingsley Suamataia) playing against – an elite pass rusher there (in Cincinnati). It’s a good lesson, good opportunity to learn and grow, so by no means am I down on Kingsley, I’ve got a lot of faith in him.”

Q: How much does your run blocking scheme change when you’re shifting personnel when it comes to the running back?

HECK: “I’d say not much. One of the things that we try to do is we do a lot of different kinds of run schemes – inside zone, mid zone, gap schemes and so we usually carry a mixture of all those things, and we ask our backs to learn them all so that’s a tall order. It’s true some backs are better at this than that, but really, we work hard at, ‘Hey, let’s be good at all these things because if this is drying up, let’s go to this.’”

DEFENSIVE BACKS COACH DAVE MERRITT

Q: What has impressed you the most about Trent McDuffie so far this season?

MERRITT: “His (Trent McDuffie) ability to be calm no matter where we put him on the defense. Whether he’s going to the corner position, whether he’s sliding into the nickel position – just his ability to be able to move around because last year he didn’t have to necessarily travel around as much. He’s just a good guy that you can talk to about, ‘Hey, this is what we would like to do.’ Whether it’s bunch, stacks (or) whether it’s a particular wide receiver and Trent just never bats an eye.”

Q: With a dynamic running back like Falcons RB Bijan Robinson that is effective in the run and pass game, what does the secondary have to be mindful of?

MERRITT: “You have to ready to – number one – not only the running back (Falcons RB Bijan Robinson), you have to be ready to defeat blocks, first. (Falcons WR) Drake (London) is a pretty doggone good blocker. He reminds me of an old (Former NFL WR) Hines Ward, throwback type (of) blocker as far as this young man is (a) big body guy. The number one thing that we’ve been working on all week is making sure we take care of the first contact, which is our pressure key, then we can get to the running back next. Understanding that five (Falcons WR Drake London) is the guy that does a lot of the heavy lifting in being ready to crack-replace and if he’s getting ready to block you, you better make sure you bring your lunch pail. Then, you have to deal with the (running) back next. I think a lot of people when they are looking at this run scheme – their eyes are so focused on the (running) back that all of a sudden, they’re getting cracked (or) they’re getting walled off, so if you don’t take off the first line of defense first, as far as offensive lineman cutting, as well as wide receivers blocking, it’s going to be a long day.”

Q: Nazeeh Johnson got a lot of work on Sunday, too. Is that just a matter of getting him back into football shape?

MERRITT: “That’s exactly right. I mean, Nazeeh Johnson, you’re talking – you cannot – there’s not a better human being in that locker room, in my opinion, than Nazeeh Johnson. He’s always positive (and) he’s always smiling. ‘Brotha -man’ is his word – ‘What’s up, brotha-man’ so Nazeeh is one of those guys – to be able to get him going and playing in some of his first time NFL games. If you think about it, he’s been a special teamer and when I say playing, I mean playing the corner position. Nazeeh is doing a great job for us and he’s going to continue to learn. He had the touchdown that he gave up the other day in the redzone, but he’ll learn from that. He’s just a great young man who we’re happy that (he is a) part of the fab five (and) that he’s one of the fifth pieces of that puzzle that’s stepping up for us.”

RUNNING BACKS COACH TODD PINKSTON

Q: What do you see from Carson Steele going into this week?

PINKSTON: “Carson (Steele) is going in just being confident. You can see his work ethic and (the) things that he’s doing are very impressive.”

Q: How has Samaje Perine grown since he first got here, and do you think he’s ready for a 100% workload?

PINKSTON: “He’s (Samaje Perine) a smart vet, he’s been around, he’s been in the game for a long time. He’ll be ready to go, (the) guy (has) prepared well.”

Q: What have you seen from Isiah Pacheco since his injury?

PINKSTON: “His (Isiah Pacheco) mental toughness. He’s a guy that wants to be out there regardless of what he has going on. That’s one thing about Isiah (Pacheco) is he’s going to bring the energy, he’s going to go 100 miles to nothing, every play and that’s something that he’s still going to bring once he starts his PT (physical therapy).”

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