Chiefs receiver was knocked out in Week 10 by Jags safety. What he thinks about rematch
Kansas City Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster says he isn’t concerned about going up against Jacksonville safety Andre Cisco in this week’s NFL playoffs after the defender’s Week 10 helmet-to-helmet hit knocked Smith-Schuster out of the game.
Smith-Schuster, who suffered a concussion on the play, missed one week after that before returning to the Chiefs lineup against the Los Angeles Rams. Cisco was not flagged for the hit, though he was later fined $6,612 by the NFL.
“I just play ball, at the end of the day. I think everything’s gonna set up how it’s meant to be. I don’t think about the past,” Smith-Schuster said Thursday after Chiefs practice. “Like I said, I think Cisco is a great player. He’s an aggressive guy. He plays hard. He has his big hits. And that just goes to say that, I’ve just gotta play harder. That’s the respect game that he brings to the table and just that we have to bring to the table.”
Smith-Schuster revealed Thursday that Cisco sent him a Twitter direct message after the teams’ first matchup.
“He apologized. It’s all good. I said I appreciate it,” Smith-Schuster said. “He’s been in the league for quite some time. I know his game. He plays hard. He’s a good player. So there’s nothing wrong with that.”
Many Chiefs were upset following KC’s home 27-17 win that Cisco went unpenalized. That included coach Andy Reid, who said after the game that “guys don’t get hit in the shoulder and lay around like that right there. Somewhere, the head was involved. And so that’s what the rule’s put in for — that type of thing.”
Receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, who also was on the receiving end of a big hit from Cisco in that game, was vocal afterward about Cisco’s actions deserving a flag.
“Those kinds of hits are not welcome in this game, man, because we’re all playing and putting our lives on the line every single play,” Valdes-Scantling said then. “Are they protecting us?”
Smith-Schuster, who displayed the “fencing” response against Jacksonville after Cisco’s hit, said Thursday he understood why teammates would come to his defense after seeing the on-field collision.
“When players get hit and go down, everyone’s gonna be emotional. One of my really good family friends, Tua (Tagovailoa, Miami Dolphins quarterback), he’s going through the situation,” Smith-Schuster said. “So, for me, everyone around here is just very emotional, but I guess going into this game, we’re just so pumped and ready. We haven’t played ball for two weeks now. So it’s just more so for us to go out there and just showcase for our fans.”
This Divisional Round matchup against the Jaguars will be Smith-Schuster’s fourth career playoff game. He went 0-3 with the Steelers in the postseason, with the last loss coming against the Chiefs in last year’s Wild Card round.
“We just want to play ball,” Smith-Schuster said. “We’ve been sitting on our butt for two weeks just training and practicing. This Saturday comes, we’re just gonna have a lot of fun.”
And — partly because of Cisco — Smith-Schuster anticipates the contest will feature some physicality.
“You talk about a defense that’s an aggressive defense. They play hard. They attack the ball, and that’s something that happened last game — and even this past game, them playing against the Chargers, you can see that they’re not going to quit,” Smith-Schuster said. “They have a high-powered offense just as we do.
“So it’s gonna be nice, a good game. You know, gladiator football is what I would say.”
This story was originally published January 20, 2023 at 7:00 AM.
