The Kansas City Chiefs are 1-0 in the preseason after beating the Arizona Cardinals, 34-19, at University of Phoenix Stadium on Saturday night. Kansas City started slow and got down 10-0 before storming back with 34 unanswered points, largely on the back of its second team.
UPDATE: Appears Jeff Allen escaped without major damage. Same for Knile Davis and De’Anthony Thomas:
Knile Davis has a knee sprain, DAT has a calf strain, Jeff Allen has MCL sprain, Eric Kush has shoulder contusion.
— Chiefs Reporter (@ChiefsReporter) August 16, 2015
The first-team defense took the field first and was victimized by a 57-yard pass from Carson Palmer to Andre Ellington, setting up first-and-goal. Ellington caught the ball in the flat and beat Husain Abdullah, taking it inside the 10-yard line. The Chiefs almost stiffened, but allowed Ellington to score on a two-yard run on third down. The play preceeding the touchdown is noteworthy because Derrick Johnson submarined a lineman and took down Ellington for a loss. It was beautiful to watch.
Offensively, the starters were on the field for three possessions and only mustered a field goal. Alex Smith had a rough night but did push the ball down the field, taking a deep shot to Jeremy Maclin on the first play that resulted in an incomplete pass. Smith threw a bad interception to Tyrann Mathieu on Kansas City’s first possession, resulting in three points.
Smith finished 6-of-10 for 42 yards and an interception. Ultimately it was a forgettable night. We already know what Smith brings to the table, so this really is not much of a concern.
The first-team offensive line was very solid, although we are awaiting word on Jeff Allen. Allen left the field on a cart and the team has reported it was a knee injury. He was replaced by Donald Stephenson, who did a nice job. Eric Fisher looked excellent, stonewalling his opponents every time.
The star of the game was Chase Daniel, who absolutely lit Arizona up. Daniel finished the game with a statline of 17-of-21 for 189 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite target was Fred Williams, who caught six passes on six targets for 82 yards and a score. The other offensive star was Charchandrick West, who frankly should be seeing more time over Knile Davis. West, who actually has something called vision, ran for 49 yards on six carries while catching three passes for 43 yards.
Ramik Wilson was impressive in his debut, leading Kansas City with six tackles and a pair of pass deflections to go with an interception. Justin March also played well, totaling four tackles. Other than the one big-gainer by Ellington, Kansas City was nothing short of dominant on defense throughout the game. The Cardinals only rushed for 75 yards on 27 attempts, averaging 2.8 yards per carry.