Chiefs vs. Bengals, Week 13 preview | KCSN Daily 12.2
Plus players to watch, final injury report, KCSN podcasts and more Chiefs news.
Welcome back to the latest issue of KCSN Daily, where we deliver the best Kansas City Chiefs content to your inbox.
The Chiefs will face the Cincinnati Bengals during Week 13 in Cincinnati, Ohio at Paycor Stadium. It’s the first of a three-game road stretch for Kansas City, and perhaps their toughest remaining opponent on the regular season schedule. Kickoff is set for Sunday, Dec. 4 at 3:25 p.m. CT. The game will be televised on the majority of CBS stations around the country with Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson on the call.
The next home game for K.C. isn’t until Week 16, but you can find tickets to that game down below.
KC Laboratory - Chiefs vs. Bengals Week 13 Preview:
KCSN’s Kent Swanson, Craig Stout, and Matt Lane preview the Kansas City Chiefs and Cincinnati Bengals game on Sunday.
Players to watch in Week 13:
S Justin Reid: Somehow, Reid managed to insert himself into the Chiefs-Bengals rivalry with some confident talk about the secondary shutting Cincinnati down. He’s got Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase calling him, “Tuna in a Can.” Then there is Bengals TE Hayden Hurst responding with how he’s the last person anyone should want to trash talk. In any event, Reid talked the talk and now he has to follow it up by walking the walk with a big performance.
DE Carlos Dunlap: This marks Dunlap’s first time returning to Cincinnati since they traded him to the Seattle Seahawks during the 2020 NFL season. Dunlap has been a big piece of the resurgent pass rush in Kansas City and hasn’t recorded a sack since his 100th career sack. He could have something to prove against his former team during this homecoming.
RB Isiah Pacheco: The lack of a consistent run game seemed to really hurt Kansas City against Cincinnati in the AFC title game last season. In the past few weeks, the Chiefs have made a concerted effort to get Pacheco and the ground game going. When Bengals DC Lou Anarumo wants to drop eight in coverage against Patrick Mahomes, checking to run plays with Pacheco is going to be crucial to their success.
WR JuJu Smith-Schuster: Last week was Smith-Schuster’s first week back from injury, but he didn’t play his full helping of snaps. Andy Reid said following the game that he wasn’t very involved in the opening game script because they didn’t know if he’d be available to play. This week, Smith-Schuster missed the first practice of the week with illness, but he has been present ever since. Will his workload more closely resemble normalcy this week?
Defensive Film Breakdown - Chiefs getting the best out of DE Mike Danna:
Former Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro Linebacker Derrick Johnson breaks down the defensive film from past Chiefs games highlighting the improved linebacker play from the past couple of games.
Final Injury Report:
Chiefs:
DNP: WR Kadarius Toney (Hamstring).
LP: S Deon Bush (Elbow).
FP: RB Jerick McKinnon (Hamstring), WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (Illness), S Juan Thornhill (Calf), LG Joe Thuney (Ankle), RG Trey Smith (Knee), CB L’Jarius Sneed (Calf), OT Lucas Niang (Knee), WR Justin Watson (Knee), WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling (Shoulder), DE Carlos Dunlap (Foot), S Bryan Cook (Wrist), and CB Jaylen Watson (Hand).
Designations: S Deon Bush (Questionable) and WR Kadarius Toney (Out).
Bengals:
DNP: LB Logan Wilson (Illness).
LP: S Vonn Bell (Hamstring), DT DJ Reader (Ankle/NIR-Personal), and RB Joe Mixon (Concussion).
FP: WR Ja’Marr Chase (Hip), DT Josh Tupou (Calf), and OT La’el Collins (NIR - Rest).
Designations: WR Ja’Marr Chase (Questionable), LB Logan Wilson (Questionable), and RB Joe Mixon (Questionable).
Key:
DNP (Did Not Participate), LP (Limited Participant), FP (Full Participant), NIR (Not Injury Related).
KCSN Update:
KCSN’s BJ Kissel sits down with Pro Football Focus' Trevor Sikkema to get his three key matchups before the Kansas City Chiefs' square off with the Cincinnati Bengals in a 2022 AFC Championship rematch.
Quotable:
“Yeah, I’ve always been one of the smaller DBs all growing up, so to me it’s just more of a mindset. I feel like I just go out there and play as confident as I can and just trust my techniques that the coaches have taught me and play within the system, know my leverages and I feel like I can do a good job out there against these solid receivers.” - Trent McDuffie on playing bigger than he is
“Yeah, I’m not real big on that. He’s new to our team, so he’s aware of it now, for sure. He wasn’t before.” - Andy Reid on Justin Reid’s back-and-forth with Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase and TE Hayden Hurt
Quick Hits:
From KCSN: Our Joseph Hefner is back again, looking at how the Chiefs and their opponents perform against the blitz. Check out his latest analytics breakdown below.
From My Cause My Cleats Week: It’s My Cause My Cleats week with a number of players wearing special cleats for a charity of their choosing. KSHB-TV’s McKenzie Nelson snapped a shot of Patrick Mahomes’ custom cleats for his 15 & The Mahomies foundation.
From Fox Sports: It has been a long time since the Chiefs last won a game in Cincinnati. John Mackovic was the head coach and Todd Blackledge was the quarterback.
Important dates ahead:
Sunday, Dec. 4 at 3:25 p.m. CT - Week 13: Chiefs vs. Bengals - Paycor Stadium - Cincinnati, Ohio
The Soul of KC Holiday Raffle & Toy Drive is back for another year. Through your raffle ticket purchases, the KCSN foundation will be able to get presents for Operation Breakthrough’s Christmas Store. Last year, we raised nearly $14,000 to benefit kids in the Kansas City community.
Raffle tickets can be purchased through the @KCSportsNetwork Venmo. You can find a list of prizes in the graphic above.
1 ticket = $20. 10 tickets for $100. Tickets will be on sale through December 6. Winners will be drawn LIVE on the KC Sports Network YouTube channel at halftime of the December 11 game when the Chiefs take on the Denver Broncos.