Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid went out of his way to highlight two players who “stood out” in Saturday’s season opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
On offense, it was rookie running back Carson Steele.
And on defense, it was fourth-round safety Jaden Hicks.
The latter, according to Reid, “did a good job in every respect” and contributed on defense and on special teams.
“I liked what I saw,” Reid said. “He’s big and he’s fast.”
A few minutes after the game, Hicks was smiling broadly as he talked about his first experiences as a professional in the Chiefs’ stuffy (and unair-conditioned) locker room.
“It was surreal being there, the first NFL game,” Hicks told The Star. “It was just awesome.”
The 1.85 m tall and 97 kg heavy Hicks demonstrated his physicality especially in some plays in the first half.
On a third-and-long, he grabbed the ankle of Jacksonville running back Tank Bigsby and brought him down cleanly in the open field. Hicks described it this way: “I just used my technique and did what we were taught: collapse at the point of contact.”
Later, on special teams, Hicks sprinted down the field after a punt and made another play in open space, knocking down Jacksonville returner Austin Trammell for no gain.
Hicks, who finished with three tackles, had a debut that also motivated his teammates.
Chiefs safety Bryan Cook called Saturday’s test game “a good opportunity for us to see who we have.” In other words, the team uses days like Saturday to see which young players they can potentially trust to perform under pressure.
From this perspective, Hicks is off to a good start.
“It went smoothly,” Cook said of Hicks’ first game. “Obviously he’s still working out some kinks. He’s still playing a lot of roles at his young age, so it’s going to be a challenge for him. But he’s got people around him to help him and motivate him to keep doing well.”
“But the way he does it – and his attitude – he does a phenomenal job.”
Hicks, the Chiefs’ youngest defensive player at 21, certainly didn’t seem nervous on Saturday, reporting that he felt “good and comfortable” before the game and said he was ready to be out there.
“It was just great to feel that feeling,” Hicks said of the NFL field. “But it’s not much different than college, I would say.”
One of his only mistakes came late in the second quarter. Hicks overshot on a blitz and jumped too high on Jacksonville quarterback CJ Beathard, earning him a penalty for “unnecessary roughness on the passer.” Hicks said he tried to block or deflect the pass before staying too high as he completed the play.
Even that snap showed some aggressiveness – and may be just the beginning of the Chiefs’ efforts to use Hicks in a variety of roles during the 2024 season.
When asked what he had shown the coaches on Saturday evening, Hicks did not want to go into too much detail.
“This is everyday work,” Hicks said. “Hopefully I made a good impression, but the work continues.”
