Dave Toub on Message to Chiefs Players After Loss: ‘Right the Ship'
When the Kansas City Chiefs win, they're usually allowed a bit of time to celebrate a job well done. They lost on Sunday to the Los Angeles Chargers, and the team isn't wasting any time trying to get back on track.
The Chiefs turned the ball over four times against the Chargers, finding themselves down 14-0 at one point. While they were able to turn that deficit into a lead, they couldn't hold on to that lead and made too many mistakes on both sides of the ball down the stretch. It was an ugly game from one of the league's best teams — one that finds the 1-2 Chiefs looking up at the rest of the AFC West in the divisional standings.
After the game, head coach Andy Reid felt ill and didn't address the media. He exited Arrowhead Stadium in an ambulance but, per Adam Schefter of ESPN, was in good spirits and his exit was for a precautionary observation. As a result, assistant head coach and special teams coordinator Dave Toub spoke about the team's sloppy game and why the performance is unacceptable.
"You've got to secure the football," Toub said. "Turnovers in the NFL... it shows, every time you get a team that loses the turnover battle, it's going to lose. We had four of them and were still in the game. I think it says a lot about our team. Our guys are down right now, obviously. This one hurts — everybody is going to bounce back and we're going to have a really good week this week."
Two of the Chiefs' four turnovers came from quarterback Patrick Mahomes. There was a hint of flukiness to both, though, as one was on a pass that wide receiver Marcus Kemp made contact with and the other was a rare mishap between Mahomes and Travis Kelce. Running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire fumbled, as did Tyreek Hill. With some ground to make up in the division, Toub's outlook on the team was clear as they navigate relatively unknown waters.
"This is unusual for us, to be honest," Toub said. "It's a little bit of a crossroads for us, I think. We've got great leadership and our guys are going to battle back. Our guys are going to battle back strong. We're going to have a great week of practice and clean it up. We've got to clean up the game, clean up the turnovers, execute on the offensive side of the ball, create turnovers on defense and stops on defense and play solid special teams. We'll get back on track."
Coming up on Oct. 3, the Chiefs have a road matchup against the Philadelphia Eagles on the docket. Reid is well known for his extended success as the Eagles' head coach, so this will be a homecoming of sorts for him. With that said, the Chiefs are focused on getting things together and, in Toub's words, righting the ship.
"Right the ship," Toub said of his postgame message to the team. "We haven't been here recently. We've been there before, it's been a while, but we've got to get right back in the win column again and everything will be fine. I think that's what we need to do."
