Arrowheadlines: Kansas City Chiefs News 8/20

Chiefs Training Camp Concluded Wednesday Morning from The Mothership

The coaches and players will have their "mock game" on Thursday morning, and then will pack up and head back to Kansas City with camp officially being over for the team at that point.

The players can return to their families after spending day and night with one another for the past three weeks living the college life in the dorms at Missouri Western.

After practice, quarterback Alex Smith spoke about why it's important for the team to get away from home for camp.

"It's a special time to be with your teammates up here," Smith said. "You really kind of get close because we are away from our families. When you do get down time, you're hanging out with each other, you're spending time with each other and kind of become the team.

"I always enjoy this time up here. It's a lot of fun with the fans coming up and bringing their energy to practice."

What We Learned From Wednesday's Chiefs Media Availability from The Mothership

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid addressed what he's looking for in preseason game two against the Seattle Seahawks Friday night.

"You're looking for execution, that's the primary thing," he said. "Make sure you sharpen it up as you go along here. There's good competition too, so that's a good thing. We're fortunate; this preseason we've had good competition."

Reid commented on the final day in St. Joseph, Mo.

"Just being in St. Joseph is a great thing," he said. "The people here take such good care of you—I mean, they're phenomenal. The food is unbelievable. The hospitality that they dish out too, as you saw the fields out here, these are incredible. The whole setup is a beautiful deal, so we appreciate them and all that they do for us."

The Chiefs Honored the Military at Their Final St. Joseph Practice Wednesday from The Mothership

"It just goes a long way to say that this organization is appreciative of what we do," Staff Sgt. Norris Russell Jr., who would later receive a football from Reid, said. "For them to allow us to come out here provides a huge impact to where we can go out there and experience it and tell other people about how great the environment at the facilities were, the people that work here. My hats off to this organization for what they do."

When practice concluded, the military members walked down to the field and were greeted by cheers from Chiefs fans in attendance.

Reid and the Chiefs even allowed the members to join in the closing huddle of practice, after which they were able to speak to and get autographs from the players.

Chiefs vs. Seahawks: Trent Green's Five Things to Watch from The Mothership

Before he was the color analyst for the NFL on CBS and the Chiefs preseason games, Trent Green was busy throwing touchdowns at Arrowhead. He currently ranks second in franchise history in passing yards (21,459), touchdowns (118), completions (1,720) and attempts (2,777).

He's well versed in the game of football and he's got five things to watch in the game on Friday:

Chiefs Mailbag 8/19: Will Derrick Johnson have a big year? from The Mothership

Keith from Winkler: Given Justin March's injury, does KC find a way to keep him on the roster this year?

March was having surgery on Wednesday in Kansas City, but I think it's way too early to speculate. The personnel guys still have to evaluate guys on this team who are healthy right now. There are a lot of moving parts and a roster is a very fluid thing, so it's doesn't even have to be known or settled right now.

Matt from Kansas City: Every day I wake up and Google Reggie Wayne. I know it's unlikely that we get him but I still have hope. How soon until he signs with a team and puts me out of my misery?

It might be easier to set a google alert for him, that might save you some time. But I'm sorry, I have no idea. Contrary to unpopular belief, I'm not involved in personnel decisions!

12 Things You Didn't Know about Steven Nelson from The Mothership

7. What is your favorite thing to do when you're not playing football?

Fish. I go to the ocean—a lake, a pond, whatever. My family is a big fishing family.

Youth Flag Football Players Visit #ChiefsCamp from The Mothership

Players from the YMCA's Challenger Flag Football League made an appearance at Chiefs training camp on Tuesday. Despite the scattered rainstorms and surprisingly chilly winds, a group of youth representing the team enjoyed watching a fast-paced practice, receiving autographs from their favorite players and learning a little more about the game they love.

According to the Greater Kansas City YMCA website, Challenger is a program for children and young adults with special needs or disabilities, and helps to encourage physical fitness, personal growth, fun and friendships through participation in healthy activities.

Chiefs Giving Fans the Opportunity to Host Fantasy Football Draft at Arrowhead Stadium from The Mothership

Your league can choose between multiple packages to accommodate everything you will need for the draft. In all packages, fans will have the chance to view the Super Bowl trophy, meet K.C. Wolf and even snap a photo with some Chiefs cheerleaders.

QB Series Chapter 11: Why Blackledge Didn't Make It from The Mothership

While John Elway, Dan Marino and the others from a draft class of six quarterbacks taken in 1983's first round had achieved various levels of success by 1985, Blackledge remained on the sidelines behind Bill Kenney...

...Blackledge's real misfortune was to arrive in Kansas City just as Kenney was becoming something of a phenom throwing the football after a most undistinguished career.  It wasn't as if he was beloved to the extent any of the rookie quarterbacks around the league were, at least not to Chiefs fans, but by his head coach's standards and the front office, too, he could not be easily replaced.

Flyover sends the Chiefs out of St. Joe as training camp ends from Chiefs Digest

"I think this was the first practice I've been at where there was actually a flyover," coach Andy Reid said. "That's normally saved for Super Bowls and those types of things, but how awesome was that? We all got to experience it and the guys were able to mingle with the military here, which I think is an important thing."

Before they spent time with their fans in the military, the Chiefs pushed through their last camp practice. They will hit the field on Thursday for a pre-game walkthrough session, and then head back down I-29 for Kansas City and Friday night's preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks at Arrowhead Stadium.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid wanted to send a message on preseason's first play from ESPN

Reid was signaling his intent, publicly but also to the Chiefs, that it needs to change.

"It's not just plays he's calling," Smith said. "There is kind of an unwritten deal there that rubs off on the huddle, rubs off on the guys, an attitude that comes with those plays. It says something, and I think guys really like it and really feed off it."

Reid was coy about it, though his smile while answering a question about it gave things away.

Notebook: Chiefs' Paul Fanaika enters battle at right tackle from Chiefs Digest

From Jeff Allen, Donald Stephenson, Eric Kush, Mitch Morse, Zach Fulton, Laurent Duvernay-Tardif to Jarrod Pughsley, the Chiefs have offered numerous looks at center and down the right side of the first-team offensive line since training camp began.

Why should the final day of camp be different?

The Chiefs on Wednesday rolled out Stephenson at left tackle in place of an injured Eric Fisher (ankle), Ben Grubbs at left guard, Morse at center, Duvernay-Tardif at right guard and Paul Fanaika at right tackle in place of Allen (knee).

Potential for brawls not the only reason Chiefs don't practice with other teams from ESPN

The brawls that inevitably occur between rival teams in practice are only part of the reason that such workouts aren't Reid's style.

"In today's world, with the technology, there are not a lot of secrets," Reid said. "Really, you have your coaching points, your teaching points. We try to teach on the field ... . We try to teach as we're doing it. I really don't want anybody hearing that. That's my own personal feeling. As much as I can keep in house in today's world I'd like to. I think you give up a little bit of that when you work [with another team].

"And some of these things get a little out of hand. Things happen with the competition."

Chiefs' Reid has no interest in joint practice trend from The Associated Press via FS Kansas City

Reid acknowledged the benefits of practicing against other teams.

For one thing, players may put more effort into a workout if the players lining up across from them are wearing a different jersey. There is also a benefit to the other team not knowing what your team is doing, which better simulates a game situation.

Yet in Reid's mind, those benefits don't outweigh the drawbacks: squandering a bit of proprietary information; the potential for scuffles such as the ones that erupted between the Rams and Cowboys; and the increased likelihood of an injury before the season.

Chiefs realize goal of building faster offensive team from ESPN

The Kansas City Chiefs aren't exactly fielding a track team when they use an offensive lineup that features Jamaal Charles as the running back, Jeremy Maclin, Albert Wilson and De'Anthony Thomas at wide receiver and Travis Kelce as the tight end.

But they do give the Chiefs a lineup that features five fast skill position players. Charles and Thomas were sprinters for their respective college teams. Wilson and Maclin each ran a 4.43 40 at their scouting combines while Kelce ran a 4.65, which is fast for a 260-pound player.

Chiefs wrap up camp with military tribute from The St. Joseph News-Press

Sgt. 1st Class Abram Pinning said the special treatment speaks volumes of the organization's character as a whole.

"I think it is a really good example of community partnership. For them to extend the invitation to the military community to see what it is like at training camp was really cool to see," Mr. Pinning said.

Andy Breaach is from Great Britain and is one of the servicemen representing the international officers. He said the military appreciation we often see in the United States is unusual back home.

Thursday camp preview: Manziel looks to build on positive preseason from ESPN

The Seahawks will hold a light practice before traveling to Kansas City, where they'll face the Chiefs on Friday in their second preseason game. Coach Pete Carroll's post-practice media availability should provide some updates on the statuses of a few injured players, as well as others in the secondary -- including free safety Earl Thomas and cornerback Richard Sherman -- who recently returned to practice. -- Brady Henderson

Seahawks training camp: Russell Wilson says he isn't worried about O-line; Kam Chancellor still MIA from The Seattle Post-Intelligencer

So poor was the offensive line — it allowed seven sacks — that Britt, last year's second round pick out of Missouri, was moved to right tackle to left guard earlier this week in place of a struggling Alvin Bailey and undrafted second-year man Garry Gilliam inserted as the starting right tackle.

With Lemuel Jeanpierre and Drew Nowak duking it out for the starting center spot, that leaves less than half of the offensive line settled entering Friday's preseason tilt against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium (5 p.m. Pacific, Q/13 FOX).  At this point, only left tackle Russell Okung and right guard J.R. Sweezy are locks to start.

Wednesday Round-Up: Seahawks Cornerback Richard Sherman Reviews & Previews The 2015 Preseason from Seahawks.com

This next matchup will be a good one. Kansas City is loaded on both ends of the field. Their defense is packed across the line, as well as the backfield. It will be a great test for our running backs. I like this matchup for our wideouts too.

The Chiefs also have a handful of weapons on the offensive end, and will be a solid matchup for us on defense. I'm hoping to get some reps in early, just to get my feet wet heading into this season. I like this matchup though. It gives us a great opportunity to improve and potentially reveal any other weaknesses.

Chiefs go deep at safety from The Hayes Daily News

On July 28, the Chiefs received great news at the safety spot, that Eric Berry is cancer-free.

"From first day (Berry) came in, I was here when we drafted him, he came in as a leader," Thomas said. "For him to get the ownership back in the room, we just hope his health holds up, but right now he's progressing really well. ... He'll be the leader back there."

Now with 178 starts between their top four safeties on the roster, the Chiefs have one of the deepest rotations in the NFL.

"We don't want to crown them right now but we have seven pretty good safeties that are competing to be on this football team and barring any injuries its going to be a pretty hard decision for coach Reid to make," Thomas said.

Uni Watch Power Rankings: Best-dressed cities (two-team division) from ESPN

Uni Watch ranks the 11 cities with two major pro sports teams (NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL) based upon uniform attractiveness. (The rankings of the 20 cities with three or more teams can be found here.)

The rankings are based on each city's average Uniform Numerical Index, or UNI: Each team's uniform set was ranked on a scale of 1 to 10, with points potentially being added or subtracted for intangibles that affect the fan's visual experience, such as a particularly attractive ballpark or a domed football stadium.

Area players look for employment with NFL clubs from LimaOhio.com

Let me begin with former Lima Senior standout Jarrod Pughsley, trying to make the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs.

We had him live on "Sportstalk with Koza" on Saturday morning from Glendale Arizona, hours prior to the Chiefs exhibition opener that night versus the Cardinals, and what would be Pughsley's first opportunity to ever play in an NFL game.

Even though it was only 7:20 a.m. in Arizona, Pughsley told me he was so excited about getting the chance to play in an NFL game.

Former Tech OL Willie Roaf named to 75th Anniversary All-America Team from The Shreveport Times

Former Louisiana Tech offensive lineman Willie Roaf was honored Wednesday as he was named to the 75th Anniversary All-America Team by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA). Roaf was listed among the third team honorees.

He is the only player honored from a school located in Louisiana and one of three honored from a current Conference USA member institution along with Marshall's Randy Moss and Southern Miss' Ray Guy.

Washington hoping to find home with Chiefs from The Jefferson City News Tribune

Kansas City wide receiver L'Damian Washington has been battling, and has yet to catch a break. Now on his fifth NFL team in 14 months, the Missouri product hopes to at least get a chance to show the Chiefs and others what he can do.

He is realistic of his slim chances to break preseason as a full-fledged member of the Chiefs.

"We have so many receivers, I can't jump ahead of anybody that has been here for months," Washington said after Wednesday's practice. "Guys have been here since OTAs, months before you. So, you're playing catch up the whole time."

The Chiefs signed Washington Aug. 3 as an extra body.

Blake Bortles took his lumps as a rookie, expects to see payoff now from FOX Sports

The careers of Kansas City's Eric Fisher and Jacksonville's Luke Joeckel will always remain intertwined because those tackles were the top two overall picks in the 2013 draft.

Largely because of injuries, the duo has struggled to fulfill the high expectations that surrounded them entering the NFL. And like Fisher did earlier this summer on SiriusXM NFL Radio, Joeckel admitted the pressure to produce has taken its toll.

"It's hard sometimes," he said. "Sometimes, you get a little bit caught up in that with the expectations and that stuff. But I'm really trying to keep my focus on keeping a positive mindset through it all."

Transfer tailback Donnell Alexander, son of Hall of Famer, ready to run for Akron Zips from Cleveland.com

Alexander arrived in Akron last spring after his sudden transfer from Colorado State. There were a lot of rumblings about why the projected starter was leaving after he had already served a redshirt season.

After a recent scrimmage, the son of late Kansas City Chief Hall of Fame linebacker Derrick Thomas, said one big reason was for his mother, who is about to end a year of cancer treatment.

"She's been with me, here, taking chemo treatments,'' Alexander said. "She's almost done with them. It has been a tough little journey for us with colon cancer. But she's closer to the end of it now. And that puts a fire inside of me. I have seen my coach (Todd Stroud) come through it before, so that helps too.''