Chiefs could play starters into third quarter

The Kansas City Chiefs are planning to give their starters plenty of run on Saturday.

Andy Reid has had the same system for years. The starters play a drive or two in the first preseason game, followed by an entire half the next week. In the third game, it could be either a half or into the third quarter, depending on how the starting units have played.

According to Reid’s latest presser, that will be the case once more. When Kansas City visits the Chicago Bears on Saturday at Soldier Field, we can expect to see the starters playing into the third quarter. We might also see corner Phillip Gaines for the first time, after sitting out the first two games as his repaired ACL continued to rehab.

We also know that both Jamaal Charles and Tamba Hali are not going to play. Reid has stated that both are progressing nicely from their respective surgeries, but neither has much to prove. It makes no sense to put any extra hitting on their bodies.

It will be interesting to see if the offense ends up with less work than the defense. Tot his point, the former has been well ahead of the latter. Last week, the starting offense put up 17 points in four drives, looking to be in midseason form. On the flip side, the defense was basically a broken water main.

With Eric Berry still not in camp and Justin Houston continuing to work his way back, the defense has a ton of moving parts. Perhaps Reid allows this group thetime to try and find itself before taking on Philip Rivers in Week 1 at Arrowhead Stadium.