The Kansas City Chiefs are looking to learn after a 20-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals in their first preseason game. While many of the Chiefs stars didn’t play in Saturday’s game, many players looking to make the roster put their best foot forward and will see where they need to improve ahead of Friday’s game against the Seattle Seahawks.
It’s a lot of pressure that can mount for a veteran, but even moreso for rookies going through their first training camp. One Chiefs rookie had a learning experience with a play that happened against the Cardinals and if a coach’s sharp criticism has anything to do with it, he’s unlikely to make that mistake again.
Chiefs STC Dave Toub was pretty critical of Brashard Smith's decision to not take a return out during preseason Week 1: "There are only so many opportunities. . ."
— Charles Goldman (@goldmctNFL) August 12, 2025
Chiefs Rookie RB Brashard Smith Blasted for Special Teams Play vs. Cardinals
Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub wasn’t happy with rookie running back Brashard Smith’s play on Saturday afternoon, particularly his decision not to take a single kick out for a return against the Cardinals. According to Charles Goldman, Toub lamented Smith’s decisions saying “There are only so many opportunities” and X user DMac Wake suggested Toubs’s angst revolved around a fair catch inside his own five-yard line.
I am interested (Charles may be able to add context) if Toub was referring to this punt return chance that Brashard Smith fair caught inside the 5....
— DMac Wake (@DMacWake316) August 12, 2025
I would say ideally he lets it bounce and make it tough to pin, but def can see some daylight for a return.
He also had the… https://t.co/ULy8rMcR9K pic.twitter.com/1RoAirJfVU
Smith is battling for a roster spot in a running back room with plenty of opportunity. Isiah Pacheco is looking for a rebound year after his 2024 season was derailed by a fractured fibula last September. Kareem Hunt is entering his age-30 season and Elijah Mitchell hasn’t looked like the same player as he attempts to return from a hip injury that wiped out his entire 2024 season.
A converted wide receiver, Smith still has a lot to learn at the position. It showed on Saturday as he managed just 10 yards for four carries and his lone catch lost six yards in a lackluster performance. A finger injury coming into the game or maybe some nerves when it came to making a mistake also could have hampered his pay but Toub’s comments suggest he wanted to see more assertiveness from the seventh-round pick.
It could be a case where Smith just takes this experience into the next game. But Toub may have put pressure on the rookie when he praised current kick returner Nikko Remigio on Tuesday. It has the SMU product on the roster bubble after the first preseason game and could require two strong performances in the final two games to join the team.