{"id":129968,"date":"2025-06-14T19:04:13","date_gmt":"2025-06-14T19:04:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/129968\/"},"modified":"2025-06-14T19:04:13","modified_gmt":"2025-06-14T19:04:13","slug":"chiefs-rookie-had-top-highlight-of-recent-practice-its-notable-for-this-reason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/129968\/","title":{"rendered":"Chiefs rookie had top highlight of recent practice. It\u2019s notable for this reason"},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s rare for running backs to stand out during an Organized Team Activities practice.<\/p>\n

The format is stacked against them. Players aren\u2019t in full pads or allowed to engage in full-contact play, which means the setup places a greater emphasis on the passing game.<\/p>\n

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It\u2019s notable, then, that a member of the Kansas City Chiefs backfield was part of the most impressive highlight from Thursday\u2019s workout in front of reporters.<\/p>\n

Brashard Smith, the Chiefs\u2019 seventh-round pick in April\u2019s draft<\/a>, had the best catch of the day, hauling in a deep sideline pass from quarterback Patrick Mahomes while getting past the coverage from cornerback Kristian Fulton.<\/p>\n

This type of play isn\u2019t typical for most backs. Smith had to track the ball at full speed, then look over his shoulder to haul in the ball nearly 50 yards away from Mahomes.<\/p>\n

And though the moment was one of only a few where Smith could truly stand out, Chiefs coach Andy Reid still commented Thursday that he liked what he saw from Smith since getting him to KC.<\/p>\n

\"Kansas<\/p>\n

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid holds a football while he observes players during practice at Chiefs\u2019 training facility on Thursday, May 29, 2025, in Kansas City.<\/p>\n

\u201cI like what he does. He\u2019s got good speed and (he\u2019s) a good route runner, that part of his game,\u201d Reid said. \u201c … What we\u2019ve asked him to do, he\u2019s done a good job of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Smith, at 5 foot 10 and 196 pounds, provides the Chiefs a different type of threat than they\u2019ve had recently. Although he played running back at SMU last season, Smith had previously been a receiver for three years at Miami (Florida).<\/p>\n

\u201cAt the position I play, there\u2019s not a lot of running backs that have receiver skills and running-back skills,\u201d Smith told reporters last month during Chiefs rookie minicamp. \u201cI feel like just coming in, I can contribute for sure with my skillset.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s certainly different from the other guys the Chiefs have. Isiah Pacheco has served as KC\u2019s lead back<\/a> for most of the last three seasons, while veteran Kareem Hunt excels in short yardage and with his vision.<\/p>\n

Free-agent signing Elijah Mitchell, meanwhile, is known for his speed but has a history of injuries. He also has just 28 combined catches in three pro seasons.<\/p>\n

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Hunt said he\u2019s appreciated what he\u2019s seen from Smith in early work.<\/p>\n

\u201cA guy who\u2019s very versatile and quick. Good speed,\u201d Hunt said Thursday. \u201cI like him so far, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Chiefs open their three-day mandatory minicamp Tuesday before a monthlong break. The team begins training camp in St. Joseph, Missouri, in late July.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s rare for running backs to stand out during an Organized Team Activities practice. The format is stacked…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":129969,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2063],"tags":[3285,346,5407,7,3188,118,110,2438,2437,751,5408,216,6,499,2830],"class_list":{"0":"post-129968","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-brashard-smith","9":"tag-chiefs","10":"tag-elijah-mitchell","11":"tag-football","12":"tag-isiah-pacheco","13":"tag-kansas-city","14":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","15":"tag-kansascity","16":"tag-kansascitychiefs","17":"tag-kareem-hunt","18":"tag-kristian-fulton","19":"tag-miami","20":"tag-nfl","21":"tag-patrick-mahomes","22":"tag-running-backs"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/114683279108202713","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=129968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/129968\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/129969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=129968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=129968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=129968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}