Despite the Chicago Bears’ winless record (and seemingly ever-growing list of off-the-field distractions), Kansas City Chiefs safety Justin Reid isn’t overlooking Matt Eberflus’ side.
“Everyone has opinions on what the state of Chicago is right now with their offense and defense and all those things, but they’re an NFL-caliber team,” said Reid.
Entering this Week 3 matchup, Chicago ranks 27th in total yards (547), yards per game (273.5) and yards per play (4.5).
“They earn their paychecks too,” he continued. “They’re going to be highly motivated to come in and play us… everybody is.
“We got a good challenge in front of us, they got a strong run game, pullers all over the board, a very athletic quarterback who could run all over the schoolyard… So we’re going to take this game as seriously as we took the first two games.”
The matchup appears to be a mismatch on paper, with Kansas City’s defense ranking third overall in points per game allowed.
And after an eventful Wednesday at the Bears facility, which included the resignation of defensive coordinator Alan Williams, oddsmakers have called for a double-digit Chiefs win.
Reid isn’t buying it.
“It’s a little bit of a situation where some may say that it’s easy to relax,” the former Stanford Cardinal added. “This is the NFL… on any given Sunday, crazy things happen. And we’re gonna need to be on our Ps and Qs.”
Kansas City allowed zero touchdowns in a week two win over Jacksonville.
Chicago Bears quarterback Justin Fields, who enters the game with two touchdowns and three interceptions on the season, took criticism head-on this week in practice.
“We all on the defensive side are fully expecting him to be the type of player which he can be, which is a high caliber player that can make the throws and get out of the pocket,” Reid said of the former Ohio State standout. “So we’re preparing for that version of Justin Fields because that’s what we think we’re gonna get when he gets loose.”
