The Kansas City Chiefs are staring down a brutal cutdown day, needing to slash their 91-man offseason roster to 53 players by Sunday’s deadline. This massive overhaul follows a hard-fought 9-9 tie with our Seattle Seahawks in their preseason finale on Friday night. The stakes are sky-high for players fighting for a spot on the defending champs.
The Pressure Cooker Is ON in Kansas City
Chiefs General Manager Brett Veach is knee-deep in tough decisions, having observed players alongside head coach Andy Reid all preseason. Veach himself admitted how grueling these final weeks are. “Every year, these last few weeks are always tough,” he said. “You have a lot of guys that have done a lot of great things for us over the years, and a lot of great competitions in the position groups.” He emphasized the process of “stacking our board like we do during the draft process, and targeting positions and needs, and creating dialog with other teams, and just trying to get our roster better.” Even after a preseason that saw them finish 0-2-1, Veach isn’t pretending they’re perfect. “We’re certainly not a finished product,” he added, confirming “there’s certainly areas that you know we can improve, and we’ll continue to do that throughout the season.”
Run Game Rises, Receivers Fight for Spots
While our Hawks managed to hold their own, the Chiefs’ run game continued to impress, even with Kenneth Walker III not playing a snap in the finale and barely featuring all preseason. Emari Demercado piled up 37 yards on nine carries, Emmett Johnson added 39 yards on seven carries, and Brashard Smith led the way with 72 yards on 16 carries. Collectively, their running backs churned out 148 yards on 32 carries, plus an additional 25 yards on four receptions. It’s clear they want to get back to that balanced playcalling and run game edge that made their offense so potent in coordinator Eric Bieniemy’s first tenure.
The receiver room saw some serious competition too. Six receivers are projected to make the cut, including Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy, Tyquan Thornton, Jalen Royals, Cyrus Allen, and Andrew Armstrong. Armstrong apparently locked down one of the last spots, flashing as a taller red zone weapon and an “excellent run blocker.” He led the Chiefs with five catches for 54 yards in the game against our Seahawks. Nikko Remigio, a “high-floor, low-ceiling” returner, is likely headed to the practice squad, with Smith and Allen possibly handling punt returns for now. And yes, Travis Kelce is still rolling, entering his 14th year in 2026 as one of three tight ends on the roster.
With Sunday’s deadline looming, Chiefs fans will be glued to their phones waiting to see who makes the cut. It’s a cutthroat business, and our Hawks made sure that final preseason game left them with plenty to chew on before the regular season kicks off.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Arrowhead Pride.
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