- Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell (46) tackles Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) during the second half at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
What Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said after Sunday’s victory.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Kansas City head coach Andy Reid spoke from the podium following Sunday’s 30-17 victory. The Chiefs (3-3) earned an important win over the Lions (4-2) to keep pace with the rest of the AFC West, which went a combined 4-0 on Sunday.
Opening statement:
“All right, I have no injuries to update you on, we came out pretty clean there. My hat goes off to our fans. What a great job they did. It’s a tough place to play, and they truly are a 12th man in there, so we appreciate them a ton. Defensively and offensively, I thought the coordinators just had great gameplans, and with the coaches, assistant coaches, I thought they did a nice job, likewise.
“And then there were some good personal things that went on. Pat Mahomes, he had a great day and then Kels (Travis Kelce), it was great to see him rolling, six catches for 78 yards. Hollywood (Brown), getting him into the mix, and he did a nice job. (Isiah) Pacheco had a nice day. And all of that because the offensive line played well. Andy Heck does a heck of a job with that. No pun intended. And then 6.1 yards per play, which was great.
- Oct 12, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt (29) rushes the ball against the Detroit Lions during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images
“Defensively, (Chamarri) Conner had 12 tackles. Led the team in tackles. David (Merritt) does a great job with that, that secondary group there, and we asked him to do a ton. We play a lot of guys, and him getting those guys organized and going is a good; he did a nice job. (Charles) Omenihu, that fourth-quarter sack was big. But I thought they really bowed up the second half there. And Joe Cullen brings a lot of energy to the team and to that group, and did a good job there. So hat goes off to those guys.
“And then we had one penalty, which was a positive. And then special teams, I thought our return game was good. We did have one punt, and then we got (Harrison) Butker a field goal, which was great, man. He did a nice job with that thing — drilled it. All in all, I could keep going here, but it was one of those good nights.”
Oct 12, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Charles Omenihu (90) sacks Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images / Denny Medley-Imagn Images
On the offensive line and the play of Jaylon Moore:
“Yeah, Jaylon I thought did a nice job. And just had a baby, which is a great thing. So last night or early this morning, however you want to put it. But he stepped in. Josh (Simmons) was gone for personal reasons, so for him to step in was a was a nice thing, and I thought he did a nice job. And tribute to Andy (Heck) for rolling those guys during the week and getting that part done.”
On how long he expects to have Simmons away from the team:
“Yeah, we’ll see. We’ll see, you know, when he’s back. He’s got to take care of that, and then we’ll see where it goes from there. But we were aware of it, yeah.”
Detroit Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson (97) knocks the ball out of the hands of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) during the first half at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
On going from 13 penalties last week to zero on Sunday night:
“Yeah, so penalties are kind of a crazy thing. Sometimes they come in waves. So, I thought the guys, I thought the officials, did a nice job, but I thought our guys did a nice job of correcting some of those with a good, conscious effort to put forward there. So, yeah, there was a positive though, really.”
On keeping his offense on the field for the initial fourth down:
“Yeah, I thought it was the right thing to do, especially when you’re playing a team that scores a lot of points. But I just thought it was the right way to go. Those are all subjective decisions. And then I know if you talk to the stats guy, they’re going to tell you to go for about every fourth down, but Fraze (Mike Frazier) does a good job of keeping it within reason. So, listen, it was the right time to do it.”
- Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Xavier Worthy (1) makes a catch for a touchdown against Detroit Lions cornerback Amik Robertson (21) during the first half at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri on Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
On how the offense is playing and whether it helps with fourth-down calls like that:
“Yeah, sure. I mean, it helps when we’re doing okay, yeah. That sure does, yeah.”
On to what he attributes the offensive surge the last three weeks:
“Yeah, I know I’ve said this, but getting 1 (Xavier Worthy) back was a big thing. Xavier brings a lot of energy, and he can do a lot of things for you. And then he has an attitude there that he brings. And getting Rashee (Rice) back in the building (when he returned to meetings three weeks ago), I also think was a big part. I think they felt that they were whole again, at least as a body there. So, that was positive, happening back in the building.”
NFL Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Rashee Rice / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
On Hollywood Brown:
“He had a nice day, four for 45, couple TDs. He’s a good football player. He loves to play. Try to give him the ball many ways. We had the jet sweep to him, which was good, and down in there in the red zone. So that was a helper.”
On Detroit’s first drive, and the officials taking the touchdown off the board:
“Yeah, actually, the official told me right away what went on. So yeah, but that was weird. You don’t see that very often. It was different kind of play, too. So, they’re very creative in what they do. And, you know, he didn’t get set.”
On his perspective of the game’s ugly ending, with Brian Branch slapping JuJu Smith-Schuster:
“Yeah, you guys saw it. I mean, the guy came up and hit JuJu for looked like no reason. We were taking a knee. So, that’s tough. I mean, put pretty good damage on JuJu’s nose.”
- Oct 12, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch (not pictured) and Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Juju Smith-Schuster (9) get into a fight after the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
On stringing together touchdown drives before and after halftime:
“Yeah, well, they deferred, so they gave us an opportunity to get the ball the second half. We were able to come out and score there, which I thought, that was big. Anytime you come out that second half and move the ball a little bit, I think it helps everybody. And then the first half, it was a good drive.
“I can’t say enough about the Nagys (Matt Nagy), the Bleymaiers (Joe Bleymaier), these guys that put that plan together, man. Conner (Embree) and the whole group just had some good stuff. Todd Pinkston, (Mark) DeLeone, we’ve added into the mix here, and he gives us a nice perspective from the defensive side. He’s kind of gotten into the offensive part of it, too. So that helps just with putting the gameplan together. But I thought it was a thick game plan.”
- Oct 12, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) rushes for a touchdown against the Detroit Lions during the first half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
On the play of Travis Kelce and what’s made him so effective:
“I think he came back in great shape. I think he’s been playing well all along, particularly these last three weeks. He came back in good shape, and at his age, that’s important. That’s a big thing.”
On the offensive line over the last few weeks:
“Yeah, you’d asked me that before. And, I mean, I agree with that, that they’ve gotten better as we’ve gone on. The young guys, or in this case, Jaylon (Moore) jumping in and doing his thing. So, it’s a good group, and they’re physical. You know, I think if you could take something away from this game, when they bear down, they can bear down. So that ends up being important.”
