Is Chiefs’ poor special teams game an easy cleanup — or sign of troubled times?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Chiefs' special teams errors cost field position and sparked Jacksonville comeback.
- Penalties nullified big plays, producing four costly special teams flags Monday.
- Coaching staff plans adjustments before Sunday night matchup with Detroit Lions.
Special teams coordinator and assistant head coach Dave Toub didn’t want to lose sight of the positive accomplishments by the kicking teams in Kansas City’s Week 5 at Jacksonville.
But even pointing out what went right required a balancing act because for every good action, there seemed to be an equal and opposite (and costly) reaction.
Running back Brashard Smith looked good returning kickoffs. But his longest return, 63 yards right after the Jaguars took the lead on a 99-yard pick-six, was wiped out by the first of two holding penalties against Jack Cochrane.
Harrison Butker delivered his first perfect kicking game of the season, drilling all four of his extra-point attempts. But his kickoff that sailed out of bounds after the Chiefs had taken a 28-24 lead with 1:48 remaining allowed Jacksonville to start a game-winning drive from the 40.
Because the Chiefs (2-3) played on Monday night, they have one fewer day to iron out the problems before the hottest team in the NFL visits. The Detroit Lions (4-1) are winners of four straight.
“We’re not going to let this game define us,” Toub said. “We’re going to bounce back and come back stronger, that’s for sure.”
A mistake-filled game by special teams is unusual for the Chiefs, who built a 15-victory season in 2024 with major contributions from those units. They won two games on walk-off field goals, and another with a blocked field goal on the final play over a five-game span.
Monday, four of the Chiefs’ season-high 13 penalties came on special teams. They’d been flagged twice on special teams in the first four games.
“It’s not like we’re getting killed on penalties this year,” Toub said. “That game, it got us. Every one of them was costly and we know it.”
The flags also erased what could have been a breakout game for Smith. The Chiefs are showing more faith in the speedy rookie as an all-purpose performer and potential home run hitter on returns. As it was, Smith averaged 26 yards on five returns.
“He’s getting better and better each week,” Toub said. “He hit that return and he was north and south in a hurry.”
As for Butker, who pushed his late kickoff too far right and out of bounds, Andy Reid likened him to a golfer looking to regain his stroke.
“Like any golfer, sometimes you’re hitting it good and other times you’re off,” Reid said. “But you work through it and keep swinging and he’ll do that. He’s a talented kicker and mentally tough. I’m not really worried about him.”
An opponent like the Lions on Sunday Night Football should get the Chiefs’ full attention on special teams, and not just because return man Kalif Raymond has already a punt for a touchdown this season.
In the Lions’ victory at Arrowhead to open the 2023 season, Detroit ran a fake punt on a fourth-and-2 from the 17. The play picked up 3 yards and the Lions ended the drive with a touchdown.
“They’ve run 12 fake punts since 2021 and they haven’t run one this year, so we know it’s coming,” Toub said. “The thing they’ll call it when you least expect it, so now you have to expect it all the time.”
And don’t commit a penalty on the play.
This story was originally published October 9, 2025 at 3:14 PM.