Chiefs Camp — Aug 23: Butker Hits From 69, Then Gives It Back

Harrison Butker's Saturday night in Tampa covered the whole range of the kicking profession: a 69-yard field goal on the last play of the first half, two more makes, and then a missed extra point and a missed 43-yard attempt in the closing minutes of a 16-15 Kansas City Chiefs loss to the Buccaneers, per the Associated Press. In a game decided by one point, the misses were the margin, and the make was the loudest thing any Chief did all week.

It was, to be clear about the shape of the evening, a reserve game. Andy Reid published his quarterback plan in advance and called it a "rough itinerary," per Gabe Swartz at KCTV5: Justin Fields for about a quarter and a half, rookie Garrett Nussmeier the same, Chris Oladokun the fourth quarter. Fields was tidy and small — 9 of 12 with nothing longer than 15 yards, per Pete Sweeney's recap at the Kansas City Star — while Travis Kelce played the first two series and Kenneth Walker III one, the veteran-cameo tier of August evidence. The most interesting offensive file again belongs to the rookies: Nussmeier ran the touchdown drive, and seventh-round back Emmett Johnson finished it from a yard out — a score that counted this time, after his touchdown in the opener was wiped by penalty, per Sweeney. Johnson put up 15 touches for 69 yards in that first game, and two productive outings in two weeks is how a late-round back builds a roster case. The night came apart late: Oladokun's fourth quarter turned when tight end Tre Watson bobbled a pass into an interception, and Kansas rookie Jalon Daniels led Tampa Bay's scoring drives against Kansas City's third-string defense, per Sweeney. On the other side of the ball, Felix Anudike-Uzomah got home for a sack, safety Jaden Hicks added another on a blitz, and first-round corner Mansoor Delane made his preseason debut — Steve Spagnuolo said Delane has been "embracing" the team's practice habits since returning to full participation, per Swartz and Neal Jones at KCTV5.

The week's hardest news came Wednesday, on camp's last padded day in St. Joseph: Ashton Gillotte, the second-year edge rusher who had just returned from a hamstring strain, ruptured his plantar fascia in practice, per Swartz. No timeline was given, and it recasts the recent signing of veteran Emmanuel Ogbah as less a depth move than the plan. The offensive line churned too. Josh Simmons, the starting left tackle, missed Tuesday with a back injury, per Joshua Brisco at Sports Illustrated citing Nate Taylor of ESPN, stayed out of pads Wednesday and sat the game. The team signed tackle Kellen Diesch off a Wednesday tryout and waived Matt Waletzko, per Jordan Foote at Sports Illustrated, while line coach Andy Heck spent the week on the opener's 12 flags: "We've got to eliminate those penalties. It's clear that those are drive killers." The good column is real, though — L'Jarius Sneed, Drue Tranquill and Chamarri Conner all returned to full participation Tuesday, per Brisco, even if Sneed and Tranquill were still held out of the game.

Eric Bieniemy is back. The offensive coordinator, away since late July after his wife, Mia, was shot at the family's home, spoke publicly Tuesday for the first time since rejoining the team, per Foote: "It was time to get back," he said, and on Mia, "Yes, she is on the road to recovery. Yes, she is doing great." Foote's report describes pass game coordinator Joe Bleymaier, who ran the offense in the interim, as reacclimated to his usual role — though nobody in Kansas City has yet said out loud who calls plays in September, and that silence is worth registering.

The compressed ledger: Trey Smith, the Pro Bowl right guard, still has not practiced since August 7 with the hip issue — Reid's Monday version, per Joshua Schulman at Sports Illustrated, was "Trey's doing good. We'll see. He's getting close... I don't know if you'll see him this week," and the week ended without him. And the starting receivers have still not taken a preseason snap: Xavier Worthy sat Saturday on Schulman's list of planned holdouts, with the shoulder cited — Schulman writes that a similar shoulder issue hampered him through the 2025 season — and Rashee Rice dressed and watched for the second straight week, per Sweeney. Both practiced through camp's final week, so this reads as game caution rather than setback, but the one genuine receiver injury is real: Tyquan Thornton, the likely third receiver, left Tuesday's practice on a cart with a strained hamstring, per Brisco.

Back in July we previewed this team as the empire's regression in reverse — a six-and-11 season built from one-score coin flips, with the snapback resting on two conditions: Patrick Mahomes' knee being right, and the receiver room solving the man-coverage book. We've been checking that preview against camp every week, and the split is now clean — Mahomes has been a full participant in practice all summer, per the Associated Press, while the receiver condition has gone two preseason games without producing a single live snap of evidence, and the line in front of both is down two starters. One more episode before the season starts settling it.

What to watch: whether Worthy or Rice finally plays in Friday's preseason finale against Seattle — Reid even left the door ajar on Mahomes with a "we'll see," per Swartz — and whether Smith and Simmons practice before the roster cuts to 53 on Sunday. We'll check after cut day.

_Data via nflverse._