On the excitement playing the Chiefs in Week 1:
“Honestly, it is an opportunity first game of the season going against a great offense. It is a chance to show what we got and a chance to get an early test and see how we execute.”
On the rotation at LB during training camp and the preseason and if that has been a drawback for the unit to not be collectively together as much:
“No, it is a great opportunity for all of the guys to get experience. I feel comfortable. For the most part, all of the guys out there are getting experience. At the end of the day, we know if we all execute our jobs – I am pretty sure every linebacker you throw out there and put at every position on our team – and they will go out there, execute and do their jobs. We feel very confident in that.”
On what separates the Chiefs offense from the rest of the NFL:
“They have it all – a great O-line, a great quarterback, great receivers and great running backs. They make you have to execute on all different levels – run game, pass game, intermediate pass game, play action and all of that stuff. They make you execute, and they make sure everybody is doing their job. If one person is not doing their job, that is when they hit you with a big play.”
On if Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes’ ability to improvise challenges defenses:
“He is a great quarterback. Obviously, first of all, he throws the ball very, very well. For us, we have to make sure we go out there and we execute our jobs and everyone is in their right position and right landmarks and make it tough on him. He is a great quarterback for a reason. We have to go out and make it hard on him.”
On Chiefs TE Travis Kelce and what makes Kelce an elite TE:
“His route savviness and being able to sell pretty much every route and run another route off of it. His double moves. His frame is huge anyways so he is able to shield off defenders and stuff like that, too. Again, execute and make it hard on him. They are NFL players for a reason. He is one of the highest paid for a reason. We just have to make it hard on them and go out there and continue to do what we do.”
On it potentially being a high-scoring game with the Chiefs and potentially expecting that against some teams where a defense may just have to ‘hang on’ through the ups and downs of that game:
“You hope not as a defense. You do not want to be playing just to hang on. We have to execute. They are a great team. We have to do our job. If we win by one point, I am excited. If we win by 50 points, I am excited. If we lose by one point and a half, I am hurt. It does not matter what the score is at the end of the day. Great defenses just get the job done and us scoring more points than them.”