Chiefs vs. Cardinals: Lessons learned from dominant Week 1 victory

Juan Thornhill meant what he said

The Chiefs have to love what they saw from their secondary all the way around given the youth and inexperience coming into a new season. With several draft picks and new free agents, the pass defense was expected to take time to develop into a cohesive unit. While that might be the case in some ways, the good news is that Juan Thornhill is the experienced leader to bring them together.

Earlier this offseason, you might remember that Thornhill predicted he would have an All-Pro season for the Chiefs in 2022. That’d be good news for both player and team as he’s scheduled to hit free agency this spring following the completion of his rookie contract. With a strong season, Thornhill would show that he’s completely healthy and back from an ACL injury that affected a significant portion of his career to date.

The good news is that Thornhill looked the part in Week 1. The stat sheet doesn’t tell the story, since for the game, Thornhill had only 1 tackle and two passes deflected. But here was the effort displayed on key plays:

If Thornhill can be a disruptive presence out of the shadow of Tyrann Mathieu and as a leader for this exciting young secondary, it’s going to mean a lot to the Chiefs’ success.