KC Chiefs: Joe Thuney talks training camp and Trey Smith
By Matt Conner
According to Joe Thuney, the K.C. Chiefs are in the perfect place for the offensive line right now in St. Joseph, Missouri.
The Chiefs kicked off training camp officially this week, and Thuney, the team’s biggest offseason acquisition, is the anchor on a completely rebuilt offensive line. While it’s exciting for Chiefs Kingdom to have so many new faces in the room, especially with how high the ceiling has been elevated up front for the offense, it still requires a significant learning curve as players meet each other and learn how to work together while coaches sort through their options.
Thuney says the locale of St. Joe is ideal for a unit like the Chiefs offensive line at this point, since being so far away from other distractions allows the new guys to hang out more than ever. In recent comments to reporters this week, Thuney detailed how pleased he is with the way they’re coming together so far.
“The o-line’s a great group. We’re hanging out a lot off the field and in the locker room always talking, laughing, joking. … Being here in this bubble here on campus, we spend so much time together—always talking, always bouncing ideas off each other or explaining, ‘What do you mean by this?’ So it’s just talking to each other and using our collective brains to be totally on the same page.”
Joe Thuney says the Chiefs o-line is going to enjoy training camp.
Thuney was brought in on a five-year deal worth up to $85 million at the outset of free agency, giving the Chiefs their first star performer at left guard since Andy Reid first arrived. The Chiefs also traded for a new left tackle in Orlando Brown Jr. in a blockbuster deal with the Baltimore Ravens.
When speaking about his new partner on the left side of the line, Thuney said he’s a good match and that he’s already learning to communicate with Brown in meaningful ways.
“He’s great. He’s a great player. Like I said, being on the left side next to him, we’re always talking about what we’re seeing out there and how we’re approaching things,” said Thuney. “Coach Heck has done a great job of giving us great coaching points and pointing us in the right direction.”
The Chiefs also drafted two potential new starters along the interior in the second and sixth rounds with Creed Humphrey from Oklahoma and Trey Smith from Tennessee, respectively. Smith has been a major surprise as a sixth round pick who looks like an immediate starter, and Andy Reid has him playing with the first-team unit. Thuney had nothing but good things to say as well.
“He’s really strong. He’s physical. He’s smart. He studies his playbook really hard. Everyone’s communicating up there on the o-line, but he’s doing a great job and it’s great to be a part of this group.”