(by Ross Jacobs)
The Chiefs jumped out to a quick lead here after the Cardinals turned the ball over on the opening kickoff and then their first offensive possession, but once the backups were in the Cardinals clawed their way back into it before eventually taking the lead, mostly on the back of Jacoby Brissett.
There weren’t any huge revelations as far as talent. Nobody that jumped out and looked way better than expected and nobody that really laid an egg either, but there were a couple of potential depth chart surprises, particularly with the Chiefs. They had an odd rotation going at receiver.
Player Notes…
-- The Chiefs first two plays after getting the ball at the Arizona 12 yard line had Isiah Pacheco in the backfield and Xavier Worthy, Juju Smith-Schuster, and Tyquan Thornton on the field. On the third play, at the goal line, they pulled Worthy for Jason Brownlee who caught a TD. Pacheco was in every play.
The next series Gardner Minshew took over and with him came Kareem Hunt at RB and Worthy, Thornton, and Jalen Royals at receiver. After a few plays Robert Tonyan came in as the third TE ahead of Jared Wiley who wouldn’t get into the game until quite a bit later. Worthy left and was replaced by Skyy Moore while Royals and Thornton stayed in. Elijah Mitchell also replaced Hunt.
For the third series Brownlee was back in the game replacing Thornton. Royals and Moore stayed in. Carson Steele replaced Mitchell and looked a bit quicker than last year. Tonyan was in at TE.
So it seems like, assuming Rashee Rice and Hollywood Brown are the WR starters when healthy, Smith-Schuster and Thornton are the primary backups, and then Royals, Brownlee, and Moore are the 3rd stringers at the moment.
Tonyan is ahead of Wiley who doesn’t seem to be making any progress despite his great athleticism.
And the RB room is as expected although the exact split between Pacheco and Hunt can’t be answered yet.
Royals did not stand out in any way. He looks like just another guy out there right now. It’s still early, but I was hoping to see a spark from him.
Brashard Smith played very late, after even Steele. Not sure he’s going to make the team.
-- The final set of notes are on the Chiefs offensive line. Rookie LT Josh Simmons started and looked quite solid although it was a very brief appearance. Jaylon Moore was playing backup RT behind Taylor. Kingsley Suamataia is going to be an issue at LG. He just isn’t very good.
-- On the Cardinals side everything was as expected. Zay Jones is the #2 receiver after Harrison. That’s been a discovery we made from Chalk Talk Database. He’s bulked up and is moving well. Michael Wilson is #3 and Dortch has fallen to 4th.
Marvin Harrison looks the same as last year. He’s fine but I still see no signs of special.
James Conner is clearly still the lead at RB. He played the first series and was gone. However, Trey Benson was in after that and played with the rest of the starters for one more series. He also stayed in after they left. He looked ok. Obviously the athleticism is real, and he can really string together some moves, but it looks like he’s still plagued by the same problems he suffered in college…he’s indecisive too often and is looking for the homerun instead of plowing forward for whatever he can get. He’s definitely going to get some touches this year to spell Conner, but in no way, shape, or form is this a real split.
Emari Demercado came in for the 2-minute drill and looked fast and explosive.
-- Defensive Player Notes…
Contrary to some rumblings earlier in the year, rookie LB Cody Simon is not starting for the Cardinals. He was playing deep into the game. Mack Wilson is the starter and green dot. Simon will take over in a few years though. He has the look of a respectable future starter.
Will Johnson looks good. He got dinged with a penalty on the goalline, but he’s going to be just fine. If his knee holds up he’s a massive steal for Arizona in the 2nd round.
Cardinals rookie 5th rounder CB Denzel Burke was flying around like a cruise missile. Very good first impression here.
