The Chiefs are coming off an impressive 38-10 win last Saturday over the Arizona Cardinals. It was a much better performance offensively compared to their loss against the Saints. In their return to State Farm Stadium since winning Super Bowl 57, the offense put on a show and had a bounce-back performance. On top of that, a young rookie on offense named Rashee Rice (who I have spoken very highly of) had his breakout performance.
Mahomes Sets The Tone
After the Chiefs’ first two drives resulted in three and outs, Patrick Mahomes led a masterful 10-play, 92-yard drive that culminated in an 18-yard touchdown pass to Justin Watson, who made one hell of a catch by the way. Check it out here. Overall, Mahomes went 10-15 for 105 yards and a touchdown. The offense was just getting warmed up. All four quarterbacks had their turn at running the offense when their number was called. Combined, Mahomes, Blaine Gabbert, Shane Buechele, and Chris Oladokun went 31-38, 393 yards, and three passing touchdowns. After the game, he was very complimentary of the offense as a whole saying “I thought we all did a good job and we had a better sense of urgency”. It’s just business as usual as the Chiefs’ offense keeps rolling.
Remember this name: Rashee Rice
The rookie second-round draft pick out of SMU made his presence known in the second preseason game with an impressive eight-catch, 92-yard performance. Just to remind everyone, his final season as a college receiver was eye-opening (in a good way): 96 catches, 1,355 yards, and 10 touchdowns in 12 games.I think he will be a great asset for this team not just in the short term but in the long term. He will probably be used in spurts to start the season just to get him comfortable, but with the way Patrick Mahomes spreads the ball around, he should get many more opportunities as the year progresses. There was another young receiver who made a great impression on Saturday: Ihmir Smith-Marsette.
Smith-Marsette Shines
Four catches for 92 yards and a touchdown for Ihmir Smith-Marsette, including a 44 yard pass from Blaine Gabbert. Check it out here. But perhaps his best play was his front flip into the end zone.
I LOVED it. After the game, Marsette said his goal is to make the final 53 man roster. He’s got one more preseason game to make his impression so let’s see what happens. Speaking of the last preseason game, here’s a quick preview of this weekend’s upcoming game against the Cleveland Browns.
Browns-Chiefs Preview
The Browns are coming off a tie against the Philadelphia Eagles in their previous game as they did not play any of their regular starters, notably quarterback Deshaun Watson. For this upcoming game, I do not expect either team to play their starters but it is still an important game as the final determinations for the final 53-man roster are made. For Kansas City specifically, I want to see if Ihmir Smith-Marsette ends up making the final roster. I think he will. Let’s see who survives cutdown day and gets to fulfill their dream as an NFL player.
