Chiefs corner Phillip Gaines making an impression on special teams

Chiefs cornerback Phillip Gaines has been opening some eyes on special teams lately.

Gaines had a big hit on punt coverage against Miami on Sept. 21 and on Monday night, helped trap the Patriots inside their own 5-yard line by corralling a Dustin Colquitt punt out of the air near the goal line and flipping it back to a teammate.

“He’s a three-phase starter for us and our No. 1 gunner right now,” special teams coach Dave Toub said. “He’s been making a lot of plays out there.”

Gaines, the Chiefs’ third-round pick this year who ran a 4.38 40-yard dash prior the draft, has proven to be adept at using his speed to zoom by his man as a gunner and blast the punt returner.

“He timed it up perfectly the last two games,” Toub said. “That’s the skill of it. That’s the thing he’s learned and he’s getting better and better at it. We’re really happy with his progress.”

Gaines is doing so well, in fact, that Toub thinks he’ll start seeing a little more respect from opponents.

“They’ve been singling him up,” Toub said. “I told him, ‘Get ready, they’re probably gonna start doubling you now.’ The last two weeks, he’s made some big plays covering those bomb kicks that Colquitt has been giving us.”

The Chiefs drafted Gaines to be more than a special-teams player, however, and he’s seen very few defensive snaps through the first four games.

Still, Toub said Gaines is on track to fulfill is potential on that side of the ball.

“We’re like the proving ground for guys — we get them going and build confidence and they make plays for us and then it carries over,” Toub said. “You see a guy like (Ron) Parker, for instance, last year he was our gunner, now he’s a starter. That’s just the way it evolves for players.”

This story was originally published October 3, 2014 at 6:16 PM with the headline "Chiefs corner Phillip Gaines making an impression on special teams."