The Kansas City Chiefs were back at Missouri Western State University in St. Joseph, Missouri on Thursday for their final training camp practice prior to the preseason opener against the Chicago Bears on Saturday.
It was a good practice, with the team looking sharp ahead of their first real action of the season. There weren’t many sloppy plays and players seemed to have a good level of focus heading into their first matchup against an opponent. Some players took advantage of increased repetitions in practice, while others seem to be falling out of favor with the coaching staff. It’s a reminder that when the lights come on in Chicago this Saturday, many players will have a lot on the line.
Here are some of the things that we’re taking away from the last training camp practice ahead of the preseason:
Two confirmations from ESPN's Matt Miller
ESPN NFL draft analyst Matt Miller was out at Chiefs training camp on Thursday. He confirmed a few of the things that have been widely reported out of camp. First, he confirmed that the hype surrounding Chiefs rookie RB Isiah Pacheco is real. He says that Pacheco passes the eye test, showing impressive burst and power.
Can confirm some of the training camp hype on Isiah Pacheco. He definitely passes the eyeball test in person while showing impressive burst and power. There’s a lot of juice to his game.
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) August 11, 2022
The second thing that Miller confirmed was the connection between Patrick Mahomes and JuJu Smith-Schuster. The free agent addition seems to be carving out a nice role in the offense as one of Mahomes’ top targets through training camp.
Mahomes to JuJu connection looking nice. #ChiefsCamp
— Matt Miller (@nfldraftscout) August 11, 2022
Joshua Williams settling in
We’ve seen rookie cornerback Trent McDuffie really settle in during recent practice sessions. On Thursday, the Chiefs started to see one of his rookie counterparts settle in a bit more. Joshua Williams made this really nice play on Skyy Moore during team drills knocking the ball free before the rookie WR could gain control.
Nice play by Joshua Williams against Skyy Moore pic.twitter.com/BHtx6hYTva
— KC Sports Network (@KCSportsNetwork) August 11, 2022
Williams had a handful of other good plays in coverage. He has generally been in the position to make plays throughout training camp. Now, it seems like he’s finding the confidence to make some of those plays that he didn’t make early on in practices in St. Joe.
George Karlaftis, Carlos Dunlap get starting snaps
With Frank Clark missing practice due to an illness, it opened an opportunity for both rookie DE George Karlaftis and veteran DE Carlos Dunlap to get some repetitions with the first-team defense. They mixed in alongside Mike Danna, who has been the starter opposite Clark for the majority of training camp.
Karlaftis took advantage of his repetitions, even batting down a Mahomes pass after dropping out of his rush attempt.
Karlaftis with a deflection pic.twitter.com/MJ0YA4FQ5D
— KC Sports Network (@KCSportsNetwork) August 11, 2022
It feels like this group is trending toward being a true rotation, with Clark and Danna getting the nod as starters in name only. Should Clark’s illness persist into the weekend, it could prove helpful for the team as they look to evaluate some of the edge rushers further down the depth chart, such as Malik Herring and Joshua Kaindoh.
Ronald Jones low in the pecking order
According to our friends at KC Sports Network, the 9-on-7 repetitions during practice went Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Jerick McKinnon, Isiah Pacheco and Ronald Jones. Later during the team’s long-drive period, Arrowhead Pride’s Pete Sweeney reported that Jones was getting repetitions with the third team offense. Each of Edwards-Helaire, McKinnon and Pacheco got first-team repetitions. Derrick Gore worked strictly with the second team. All-in-all, Jones didn’t get much action on Thursday.
“Some days he gets more than other days,” Reid said of Jones’ repetitions. “But he’s taking advantage of the chances and working hard. But he’ll have a chance to play (in the preseason). We’ll just see how he does.”
The free agent acquisition seems to be falling out of favor quickly with the offensive coaching staff and without a strong performance in the preseason, he could be at risk of not making this team.
Mahomes ready for the behind-the-back pass
You might have seen some video floating around from this year’s training camp of Patrick Mahomes completing some behind-the-back passes. Most recently, he hit the crossbar at 30 yards out with a behind-the-back pass. Speaking to reporters after practice, Mahomes explained he’s staying ready should it occur naturally, but he hasn’t asked Andy Reid if he can try it in a game yet.
“I haven’t (asked Andy Reid) yet,” Mahomes said. “Maybe as the season goes along. But usually, they happen best when they happen naturally. That’s how the left-handed pass happened in Denver a couple of years back. It was kind of out of necessity. So I just like to keep myself ready in case I have to make that pass.”
I’m not sure what type of scenario would occur where Mahomes naturally needs to complete a pass thrown behind his back. That said, there’s nothing wrong with staying ready, should the opportunity arise.
