Preseason Week 1 Star Jaden Hicks Gets Vote of Confidence From Steve Spagnuolo

In their preseason opener against the Los Angeles Rams, the Kansas City Chiefs had a multitude of winners and losers. On the positive side, perhaps no one stood out more than safety Jaden Hicks.

The third-year man delivered one of his best performances as a professional — glorified exhibition or not. It came at a critical time, too, given that defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo expressed wanting to simplify his role late last month.

Hicks' impressive showing against Los Angeles seems to have done him some good after a tumultuous offseason. Speaking to the media on Wednesday, Spagnuolo tipped his cap to the former fourth-round pick and said it was nice to see him play an instinctual brand of football.

"He had a good game," Spagnuolo said. "It was good to see. I think Jaden probably stuck out as [who] played the best in that particular game. He had a really good day here on Monday. Him and I were just talking — he was a little down yesterday and then today, he made a big play in the red zone and came up with the interception.

"He's kind of been on that trajectory, and he should be. He's been in the system for a while now. Those kind of guys, I put a little bit more pressure on because I expect them to know more and not make mistakes that, maybe, a rookie would make."

A pair of Hicks plays on the Rams' second offensive possession were excellent. First, he crashed downhill on a pass to tight end Mark Redman and delivered a punishing hit just past the yards-to-gain mark. Late in the drive, he had a superb pass breakup on a third-down heave from starter Stetson Bennett that, once again, went to a tight end. Rookie Max Klare was unable to haul in a touchdown, so LA instead settled for a field goal.

Late in the second quarter, Hicks also contributed on back-to-back tackles for a net Rams gain of no yards. He certainly made the most of his Chiefs defense-leading 33 snaps, which defensive backs coach Dave Merritt admitted was an intentional effort. Kansas City wanted to see as much of Hicks as possible entering his pivotal junior season with the club.

Earlier in training camp, Hicks himself said he felt more comfortable in the defense. Perhaps going away from being asked to serve as a do-it-all chess piece did him some good.

"It’s definitely more laid back now," Hicks said. "I've got the swing of things, and it’s a great feeling. We've got a bunch of new guys in the room, so it’s fun helping everybody around."

Kansas City still has some roles to sort out in the secondary as the preseason rolls on. Hicks is expected to slot in behind Alohi Gilman and Chamarri Conner in the defensive backfield, even with Spagnuolo not fully closing the door on some nickel work for the latter. If the Rams game was any hint at what's to come for Hicks, it's important to remember that (per Pro Football Focus) he logged 16 snaps aligned as a free safety and another 15 in the box.

For his efforts, Hicks received an 88.3 overall defense grade from PFF, the highest of any player on the field for either side. That subjective assessment definitely jibes with the eye test, as the former Washington State standout was flying all over the field and looked more confident than ever.

Being in better favor with Spagnuolo can't hurt matters heading into Saturday's clash against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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