After Tuesday’s Kansas City Chiefs training camp practice, the sixth of camp involving the full team and the second with pads on, pass-game coordinator Joe Bleymaier — who has stepped up in the absence of offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy — answered questions from local media.
He provided some further insight into camp, deeper thoughts than we typically get from the offensive coaching staff. Here were his most notable quotes from Tuesday, shaping the noteworthy observations from Arrowhead Pride’s in-person coverage of practice.
The incredible Patrick Mahomes
It’s hard to point out any restrictions on quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ game right now. During a goal-to-go situation in a full-team period Tuesday, the play call had Mahomes sprint right on an option play before tucking it and gliding into the end zone.
If it looks like Mahomes is comfortable playing at 100%, Bleymaier has a hard time denying it.
“He’s always pushing the limits physically, what he can do with the football and the recovery timetable from the injuries that he has had. I haven’t seen anything with the knee out there on the field that would lend itself to show any sort of hangover or any sort of setback from the season,” Bleymaier shared. “I hate to say I’m surprised by that, but it’s just nonexistent, any sort of knee issues.”
“We’re not going to put any limitations on what Patrick can do,” Bleymaier said later on. “So rather than maybe emphasizing what we’re going to try and do more, we’re really trying to eliminate holding him back, or ‘let’s not put him in this certain situation.‘ Everything is open. From under center, to rolling left, to going right, the whole playbook.”
“He plays the game with a style,” Bleymaier reminded reporters. “You never want to take that away from him.”
Getting running backs in space
When asked about starting running back Kenneth Walker, Bleymaier made it clear that the offense is ready to maximize the advantage it has with Walker as an open-field playmaker.
“He’s going to be tough to tackle. He brings another element to the offense; I think it’s clear. Some of our screens so far this camp, a lot of our runs, and then the play actions after that, all of that kind of ties in together. Him with the offensive line, and how that opens up the rest of the field. It’s a credit to him; he has been tremendous.”
Later on, Bleymaier talked about the whole group’s talent as a strength for the play calling.
“You look at, specifically, our running backs and their skillsets. They’re tough to tackle in space,” Bleymaier reiterated. “Handing them the ball off or tossing them the ball is one way to get them out in space; then throwing them the ball is a similar way… sometimes, if everything is covered down the field and we got a running back one on one in space, that’s going to be a great matchup for us.”
Development from the backup quarterbacks
The performance of reserve quarterbacks Justin Fields and rookie Garrett Nussmeier has stood out in practice as more impressive than the backups at camp in recent seasons. Nussmeier makes some real, NFL-level anticipation throws, and Fields has been pinpoint accurate on some downfield throws.
“I’ve been impressed mentally with those guys and they’re command of the offense as well,” Bleymaier said of Fields and Nussmeier. “You can tell Justin is a veteran in the league; everything comes naturally to him in terms of calling the play and running the huddle. Then out there physically, he’s very gifted.
“Nuss, as a rookie, is continuing to learn and grow. He’s soaking in everything the vets are telling him. He’s playing fast.”
There was no official injury update from the Chiefs after practice, but Bleymaier provided his opinion on the upstart camp of rookie wide receiver Cyrus Allen, who is recovering from a bone bruise and is “day to day.”
“Early on, he grasped the playbook and what we were asking him to do,” Bleymaier said of Allen. “He has a natural feel for space out there after the snap.
“Sometimes, with young guys, when they’re learning the offense, where to line up, all the details… once the ball is snapped, natural ability gets shoved down a little bit. You could still see that he was playing with that natural ability. He’s got great physical traits; they were showing up after the snap, his mental stuff was good pre-snap, and you can build on that. That’s exciting.”
Filling in for Eric Bieniemy
Bleymaier has taken on the most added responsibility since Bieniemy left camp to tend to his wife Mia Bieniemy. He has done his best to fill one particular role of Bieniemy’s on the practice field, clearly.
“I lost my voice already,” Bleymaier smiled. “So some of him has worn off on me.”
Bleymaier has been with the Chiefs for 11 seasons, many of those accompanied by Bieniemy on staff. The two have been able to reconnect and talk football recently.
“He keeps in touch; it was great to hear from him, just on a personal standpoint,” Bleymaier shared. “He’s been reaching out more and more lately with some of the football stuff. That has kind of brought a little bit of a sense of normalcy back to our routine, just hearing him and his thoughts on the football.”
As Bleymaier reflects on his interim role each day, he thinks about how Bieniemy would hope the practices are going — and it’s not pretty.
“The funny thing was that he would not want anything to be smooth here,” Bleymaier said. “He would want this to be challenging camp, the coaches to be challenging the guys, and for us to be getting better.”
The Chiefs will be back on the practice field at 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
