Laddie Morse
In a game that meant little to nothing, this sure was a strange one. It featured a Safety (on a r3versed call against Mecole Hardman), field goals by each team (big whop), a kick-off return by Parker Washington that went 73 yards (against Dave Toub’s Special Teams unit), a dropped pass by a Chiefs WR (what a huge surprise), a successful two-point attempt (for the Jags by D’Ernest Johnson), and a TD running up the gut (by a Chiefs Full Back no less).
Patrick Mahomes
Patrick Mahomes was 3 out of 4 in passing, and ended up with a 92.2 QB Rating. The most outstanding stat about Mahomes is that he only played during the Chiefs first drive. That’s not surprising to me, but with the score at 10 for the Jags and 3 for the Chiefs, it was a bit surprising that HC Andy Reid chose to take him out of the game and insert his #2 guy, Carson Wentz.
Overall
While the Chiefs combined QB rating hovered around 95 the Jags combined QB rating was around 118 and that basically tells the story of this game. So does the sacks total of 5 for the Jags and 2 for K.C.. The Chiefs second and third teams didn’t look as sharp as they did in St. Joseph and so we’ll have to wait until next week to find out who gets the bump up in playing time.
By the Quarter Scoring
While I was glad to see Andy Reid take a chance on 4th and goal from the one-yard line, which Carson Steele scored on, I’d have liked to see him do that when they decided to kick their first field goal with nearly 12:00 left on the clock in the first quarter of the game. They had a 4th and 3 which is close enough to give it a try. To go for it near the goal line, but not out in the middle of the field doesn’t make sense to me. Here’s the way each team scored by the quarters:
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Positives and Negatives
Immediately following the game David Bell texted me about Carson Steele and asked me what I thought of him now? I HAD been saying he would not make the 53-man roster, but I may change my mind on that one. I commented that Jaden Hicks had a good game too, but the stupid mistakes seem to keep biting the Chiefs. Like the Mecole Hardman faux pas on the kick-off? While David agreed that Hardman should not have fielded the ball at all, I stated that the rule needs clarifying. Either way, their should not have been a Safety granted because of an officials ruling.
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The new Kick-off rules need to be cleared up and quick. Here’s that play of Mecole Hardman’s again. You decide:
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My understanding is… if the ball hits in the end zone (which it did), the play is over and the ball comes out to the 20-yard line. What do you think? Did that play have anything to do with the outcome of the game? Not really. However, the NFL needs to get the Kick-off Rules right before they foul up a live regular season affair. With a change as big as that one is for the league, the powers that be must come through and make it as clear as day… before… something happens in a real game that counts towards the playoffs.
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I was happy to see Louis Rees-Zammit (LRZ) get the opportunity to kick-off in a game setting.
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Impact Players
Sometimes a player balls out in the first preseason game. WR Justyn Ross has had experience with that. He’s done it again this year and some go so far as to say they think it means he’ll be making the 53-man roster. I’m not so sure:
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Then there’s what Carson Steele accomplished. He was a man on a mission.
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Here’s another angle of the same play (0:11):
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What impressed me about this run was his ability to break tackles. That reminds me of Kareem Hunt… a little bit. Here’s Carson Steele’s 4th-down-and-one TD, right up the heart of the Jags defense:
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As mentioned above, rookie Jaden Hick had a very good game. Here he is hogtying Tank Bigsby, a RB who had 28 yards rushing on only 3 carries in this game (9.3 ypc average):
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Here’s a Sack by LB Jack Cochrane of Trevor Lawrence:
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Injuries
After his first catch Hollywood Brown was taken out of the game:
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From Ari Meirov comes this:
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“WR Hollywood Brown suffered a sternoclavicular
joint dislocation tonight against the Jaguars and
is currently in the hospital. HC Andy Reid compared
it to Tyreek Hill’s shoulder injury from 2019, which
caused him to miss four games.”
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Hollywood Brown’s health is a concern. He has become WR#1 and taken great care to become “the guy” in the Chiefs system.
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Xavier Worthy may need to step up his progress and reps. All will be a wait-n-see situation. As with any Preseason game, an injury to a player is always a concern. However, in Hollywood Brown’s case, it becomes a major question as the team moves forward.
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Will he be ready by the first game of the regular season? I doubt that, but it will take some time before we’ll be able to sort it out and let’s remember, his personal health is the most important thing and staying positive is important here too. We can hope it’s not as serious as this, and doesn’t require surgery, but it’s a possibility.
What do you think of the first preseason game? Disappointed? Expected? What?
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne