Frank Clark, Taco Charlton Record Noteworthy Sacks in 26-10 Win Over Patriots
With 11 seconds remaining in the first half of Monday’s game between the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots, Brian Hoyer found himself seconds away from the turf.
Upon the snap, Hoyer dropped back with one defender heading his way: defensive end Frank Clark. Clark made his way to the sack six seconds into the play, leaving the clock to run to halftime. Instead of a tie or lead, the Patriots remained trailing 6-3.
Clark accounted for one of two sacks recorded by the Chiefs in their 26-10 win over the Patriots.
The other, also occurring against Hoyer, was set by defensive end Taco Charlton. The play forced Hoyer to lose the ball, allowing linebacker Ben Niemann to recover. The takeaway was one of three that the CHiefs recorded in the second half.
“I was hella proud [of Charlton],” Clark said. “Like I’ve been saying, I’ve been playing with this dude, known this due for almost 10 years plus. Just seeing him out there making the plays he’s making, they remind me of the days from back when we were younger — when I used to coach him up and tell him different things and we spent practice going back and forth. “
The sacks by both Clark and Charlton marked the first time both recorded such stat in the same professional game.
The two were college teammates at the University of Michigan but did not get the opportunity to play in the same game due to age difference. Clark last played for the Wolverines in 2014, while Charlton left in 2017.
Clark did get the chance to mentor Charlton in practice, however — similar to the relationship the duo redeveloped when the Chiefs signed the younger in April.
“I’m just happy with the progress that he’s made up to this point. He’s still proving them wrong. Everybody was looking at Taco last year and the years before that like that man couldn’t do his job, he didn’t know how to rush the pass, or he didn’t know how to play the run or whatever. You see this man making plays? Sometimes these guys just need a chance to show what they can do.”
“If you know him right now, if you ask him how he’s doing in Kansas City, he’ll tell you he’s having a blast.”
