Nov 30, 2014; Kansas City, MO; Chiefs tight end Anthony Fasano (80) celebrates his touchdown reception with tight end Travis Kelce (87) against the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium. Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – It is far from a secret the Chiefs haven’t had a wide receiver touchdown through 12 regular-season games this year.
Coach Andy Reid has stood firm publicly in recent weeks on not being too concerned over that statistic whenever it came up.
Wednesday wasn’t different.
“I don’t worry about who gets them,” Reid told reporters during his morning media session. “I’m concerned that you score them, whatever position it is.”
Quarterback Alex Smith, who has 15 touchdown passes against five interceptions on the season, echoed his head coach.
“We’re not really worried about who scores,” Smith said. “It’s just that we do score.”
Smith points out the Chiefs have contributions in the end zone from various players in the passing game.
Running back Jamaal Charles and tight ends Travis Kelce and Anthony Fasano each have four touchdown receptions; running back Joe McKnight, who is on injured reserve recovering from a ruptured Achilles, has two; and fullback Anthony Sherman has one.
Charles and Fasano have recorded a receiving touchdown in two straight games.
Distributing the ball to players with an opportunity to score, even if they’re not a wide receiver, sits perfectly fine with Smith.
“You see Jamaal lined up as a receiver and catching the ball and there are not many backs making that kind of a play in the NFL on a starting corner,” Smith said. “So that kind of will remain our focus, just spreading the ball around and hopefully everyone is getting in on the action.”
WHAT COULD’VE BEEN
The Chiefs under general manager John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid weren’t the only team interested in acquiring quarterback Alex Smith from the San Francisco 49ers following the 2012 season.
Toss in the Cardinals, a team current coach Bruce Arians took over on Jan. 17, 2013, and then also in search for a signal caller.
“We talked about it,” Arians told Chiefs media members during a Wednesday morning conference call. “(Cardinals general manager) Steve Keim brought his name up and I said, ‘Heck yeah, if they’ll trade in the division we’d love to have him,’ because I’ve always thought he was an outstanding prospect.”
The NFC West divisional rivalry between the Cardinals and 49ers may have played a role in why discussions for Smith didn’t get off the ground.
“I think the 49ers just hung up the phone,” Arians said.
The Chiefs eventually landed Smith via trade with the 49ers on March 12, 2013, while the Cardinals secured quarterback Carson Palmer in a trade with the Oakland Raider on April 3, 2014.
Drew Stanton is Arizona’s current starting quarterback with Palmer on injured reserve recovering from a torn ACL.
FULL PADS
The Chiefs practiced in full pads Wednesday for the first time in a long time in preparation for Sunday’s road game against the Arizona Cardinals.
Teams are allowed 14 practices in full pads during the regular season, in accordance with the collective bargaining agreement.
That Wednesday’s outdoor practice comes on the heels of a two-game losing streak where the Chiefs have looked lethargic in all phases of the game likely serves as a wake-up call.
#Chiefs practicing outside today in full pads. It’s 43 degrees and they’re playing in Arizona on Sunday. #MessageReceived
— Terez A. Paylor (@TerezPaylor) December 3, 2014
Couldn’t agree more, Mr. Paylor.
