Andy Reid says Chiefs didn’t really consider putting Eric Berry back in for second half

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid met with the media on Monday for the first time since the team’s 29-28 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Thursday. Since the press had more than three full days to absorb the fact that the Chiefs allowed seven points to the Chargers while Eric Berry was in the game in the first half — and 22 points after he left — can you guess what most of the questions were about?

Here are the key takeaways from Monday’s media session Eric Berry Q&A with Reid:

Reid described Berry’s play in the first half with his usual accolade for a top-notch performance.

Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

“I thought he did a nice job,” Reid said. “He played well. There were probably one or two snaps he’d like to have back, but I thought overall he did a nice job. He did a good job disguising, and getting guys in position when needed. It was good to have him back out there.”

When asked what Berry brought to the game, Reid was a bit more effusive.

“He made plays. He made nice plays as much in the run game as the pass game. A couple of blitzes. All the way through — I mean, you’re talking about a Pro Bowl player. You add him into the mix, it’s a pretty good thing to do.”

Reid said that Berry’s presence affected everybody on the defense.

“I mentioned that to [Berry],” he said. “It picks everybody up. Gives them a little extra juice.”

Reid was asked if he had considered putting Berry back in at the end of the game, when the Chargers scored 15 points in the game’s final four minutes.

“I was nervous about him coming out at halftime — having to sit — on the first go-round,“ Reid explained. “It’s not just a matter of playing. It’s the adrenaline that’s built into it. Those legs wear out fairly quick. So why push it past that? We got a few more snaps than we thought we would, so I pulled back on him a little bit.”

Reid said that the team would continue to increase Berry’s snaps, but would do so carefully.

“I think we’ll just keep increasing and communicating,” said Reid. “That’s the most important thing. The best news is that he came out feeling OK. We’ll keep rolling with it. He’s doing a great job of communicating, which isn’t easy. He’s a competitive guy, and he wants to play. But he’s done great with that. So we’ll just keep that rolling.”

Other notes from Monday’s press session:

Reid spoke about Damien Williams’ performance on Thursday: “I mentioned to you guys that I thought we’d be OK with him,” Reid said. “I thought we’d get a pretty good performance out of him — a good effort. It was probably a step above that. He did a nice job. Did well carrying the ball. Did well catching the ball. Blocked well. I was happy with that performance.”

And that meant there would be a question about Darrel Williams, too: “He’s making good progress. Sharp kid. He has a good feel for football. Big. He has a good feel in traffic, and navigating through things. Good hands. So that was a good keep by Brett. He had some good snaps for us. A powerful runner.”

Reid spoke about how Seattle’s running game will compare to the one the Chiefs faced against the Baltimore Ravens: “It’s not quite as heavily quarterback-influenced in the run game — although [Russell Wilson] a good runner. He’ll do the option game a bit — the RPO-type thing — where he’s involved with the read, but not to the extent that Baltimore does. You still have to be aware of him, though. He’s nifty. He’s obviously a good thrower, too, so you have to be ready for that.”