The Kansas City Chiefs honored the late, great Len Dawson on Thursday night and got the win over Green Bay, here is the recap of the Chiefs’ 17-10 win.
Defense
The defense started off the game once again with the starters only playing one possession. The defense forced a three and out, with a fantastic play made by Trent McDuffie knocking the ball carrier back two yards and forcing him out of bounds to end the drive. McDuffie did enter the concussion protocol last night after that big hit, however, but the good news is he has about two weeks to recuperate.
Another young guy who stood out last night on defense was Bryan Cook, who had the only interception and turnover in this game. Also, to go along with that he had 4 total tackles and was flying around last night on defense. Steve Spagnuolo should be satisfied with what he saw from his defense all preseason.
Each drive the starting defense played, they were able to shut down the opposing starters and give up zero points showing that this young defense will be able to fly around on the field and make plays on that side of the ball. This defense will have a challenge in two weeks on Sunday, in Arizona against Kyler Murray and the Cardinals.
Offense
Patrick Mahomes did not start this game but was able to be out there for the delay of the game penalty in tribute to Len Dawson. It was somewhat obvious he would not start this game, even though in recent history Reid is known to play his starters deep in the last game, however, they have been spectacular thus far in preseason scoring every drive they had proving they are good to go for the regular season. Chad Henne started out this game for the Chiefs and had two short series, one ending in a field goal and the other ending in a punt.
The standout offensively for the Chiefs in this game was once again Shane Buechele, who last year with great QB play in the preseason actually ended up on an active roster during the season. Buechele on his first drive of the game was able to connect with tight end Matt Bushman on a 54-yard pass for a touchdown that put KC ahead 7-3.
At the start of the third quarter, Buechele once again was able to drive down the field and eventually connect with Matt Bushman again for a two-yard touchdown putting the Chiefs back up 17-10, which neither team would not score for the rest of the game and end up being the final score.
Although Buechele has proven himself to earn a spot as a backup for any team this upcoming season, the Chiefs may have to think about keeping him this go around and have him on the sideline this year backing up Patrick Mahomes.
Ronald Jones and Isaiah Pacheco looked better this game in the running game with Pacheco averaging 5.2 yards per carry and Jones averaging 5.4 yards per carry on the night. Bother were able to showcase they can contribute to the running game this season. With it being unknown if the offense will carry four running backs into the season, those guys made it tougher for coaches and staff to cut down this roster to 53.
The staff will have some tough decisions to make this week, but the Chiefs have some great additions that can come in and contribute early. Some guys if they do not get picked up by other teams will definitely make the practice squad and probably depending on the situation can see the active roster sometime this year.
The overall grade for the starters this preseason is an A. The defense did not allow any points and the offense scored every drive that they possessed. They hoped to keep this momentum going into the regular season, as the division has gotten a lot tougher and the schedule is not as easy.
