Arrowhead Pride
The Kansas City Chiefs’ 2025 season finished with a 14-12 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 18. Here are four instant takeaways from the game:
In his rookie campaign, running back Brashard Smith carved out a role in the Chiefs’ offense where he seldom served as a traditional ball carrier. The only games he was showcased in the backfield were the two matchups with the Raiders. Whether it was the second half of a blowout win or an inconsequential season finale, Smith’s opportunities were limited to garbage time.
In Week 18, Smith was the starting back and finished as the Chiefs’ leading rusher with 56 yards on 12 carries. From the jump, Smith showed patience, vision and explosive cutbacks, producing four rushes of at least eight yards.
As a first-year player, a natural learning curve can affect playing time compared to veteran running backs Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, but it should not keep worthwhile talent off the field. When given the chance, Smith has been a dynamic option in Kansas City’s backfield, but those chances were rare in 2025.
This offseason, there will be plenty of discussion about how the Chiefs address the secondary, with cornerback Jaylen Watson and safety Bryan Cook set to be unrestricted free agents.
Regardless of the plan, many of the defensive backs under contract in 2026 finished the regular season strong.
In Las Vegas, safety Chamarri Conner started the game looking to make a play. On Raiders quarterback Kenny Pickett’s first dropback, Conner was aggressive in zone coverage, identified a nearby route, anticipated the throw and secured his first interception of the season — the fourth of his career.
It was the first of seven passes Kansas City defenders broke up. Rookie cornerback Nohl Williams recorded two in his fourth consecutive start. Second-year safety Jaden Hicks added one in the third quarter, ranging over the top of a deep throw to the back corner of the end zone and laying out to knock the ball away cleanly.
No returning member of the secondary made a stronger impression over the final three games than cornerback Kristian Fulton. He totaled 10 tackles on a partial workload against the Tennessee Titans, broke up three passes against the Denver Broncos, and repeated that performance against the Raiders with three more pass breakups.
After spending much of the season on the sideline, Fulton gave the team and its fans reason to look ahead to his role in 2026.
The starting offense took the field with a new substitute at right guard for Trey Smith: Hunter Nourzad. The second-year offensive lineman replaced Mike Caliendo, who had made four previous starts while Smith was injured.
Caliendo has served as Kansas City’s primary backup at both guard spots since the previous player in that role — Washington Commanders...
