Former Chiefs assistant Kafka leading Giants offense

Fire away, uh, Patrick, happy birthday. Thank you. You’re welcome, man. Uh, just self-scouting yourself after the start and just looking at the tape the last game, you know, what are you evaluating and, uh, what are you guys can do better. Yeah, I think for myself, uh, just being better at executing in some of those earlier moments in the game, especially, I mean there was guys open, uh, obviously Noa early, but even more than that, just if I kind of sit in that pocket *** little bit longer trust those guys, uh, get the ball to the guys down the field, I feel like we can make some more explosive plays and so, um, that was stuff I scouted on myself, um, but no, we’re going up against *** good defense, uh. Team this week, especially at E line, and so, uh, finding the right moments to take those shots downfield but not, uh, taking the negative plays as well in the pocketer, is that something you frequently saw on tape or just here or there? Um, just here or there, mostly. I mean, I think even some of the runs that I made, um, that if I would have just stayed *** little bit longer, I could have made some throws to guys and let them make some plays happen. And so obviously the runs work and so you, you, you have success in the play and stuff like that, um, but when you look back on the tape sometimes you wanna make sure that you’re going through the progression the right way. Travis said that you know he’s got *** lot on his plate. The team asks *** lot for him, and he feels like he has to meet that, and he talked about even last year feeling that he needed to be out in the field for you when *** lot of guys were hurt. Do you feel like this team maybe sometimes ask for too much from Travis and maybe you know load management if you will, would help him be fresher and Um, I honestly, I honestly don’t know. I mean, I know he, he wants to be out there at the end of the day. I mean, he wants to have the chance to make some, make the place happen, and he’s made the place happen for years and so. Um, I don’t, I don’t feel like we asked for too much from him, but I mean, he, he, we asked for him to be out there and be himself and just be who he is, and I think that, that in itself is enough for us. And so, um, I, I, I wouldn’t, that’s probably *** question you can ask, but I feel like he’s, uh, in *** good spot and, and it’s hard to get him off the field. I know that. Talked about explaining to you got to explain to guys, you know, just keep running. If I’m scrambling, I’m gonna find you if you’re open. Have you had to explain that to Tywan at all or anyone else? No, no, I mean, I think Tykwon’s done *** great job start the year. I mean, I’ve missed him on some throws, and, um, he’s made big plays happen as well. And so I think if he continues to play like he’s playing, well, he’ll continue to have big plays within this offense and Um, he, he’s got *** great role in this offense. And so, uh, I think just for us in general, I think it’s just execution stuff. I mean, we’re just, we’re just barely off here and there and, and the NFL if you’re playing good defenses, if you missed plays, then the drive stall out. And so, Um, we’re just gonna continue to work and continue to practice and, and learn those things and, um, as we get guys back, we’ll continue to execute at *** higher level. Patrick wanted to take you way back, uh, shift gears. When you were 5 years old, you went to New York. You’re going back to New York. What do you remember when you were 5 years old about that trip? It’s one of my, my best memories. I think just my dad being on the Mets, um, and. Playing in those National League Championship Series versus the Braves or playing in the World Series, uh, versus the Yankees and that’s when I can first start remembering stuff and I don’t know what the rules are back then, but they just like had me out on the field. Like I was taking ground balls like Derek Jeter and, and, and then *** fly balls. And so it, it was, it was super cool and I had *** lot of great experiences then back at back at the time, the Mets were my favorite team because my dad had the most success and Um, it’s fun to be able to go to New York and it’s such *** great city and play *** football game there now. What, what gives you faith that this team can handle 0 and 2? This is the people that we have in the locker room, like, it’s even though we’ve never been 0 and 2, we’ve had stretches where we’ve lost big games kind of consecutively and guys have responded, you know, like it’s, it’s, it’s about the, the character of the guys in the locker room more than it is to play on the football field and, uh, I think that we have the guys that are gonna continue to work. They’re not gonna let this kind of push them down and they’re gonna use it if anything, uh, as motivation to be even better and so. Um, I think that’s, that gives me the most faith, and then the coaches that we have, they’ll continue to push to be even better. And so, um, we’ll have *** great week of practice this week and knowing we’re going to play our best football to, to, to win *** game against *** good football team in the Giants. I have had *** couple of times in your career we’ve lost *** couple of games it has in the beginning, as you said, but what, what do you have to do specifically, not on the field, but is there *** responsibility in the meeting rooms and all that stuff, or you, are you still play it one week at *** time and don’t try to make anything great. Um, you take it one week at *** time, but I think just continue to even amplify the little details. I mean, sometimes when you’re winning *** lot, those little details get lost and, and that’s how you lose. But when you lose early like this, you have to really just focus on those little details and, and maximize those and then you try to set the example on the practice field and stay after and do extra stuff and do *** little bit here and there and push other guys to do the same. And so, um, we’re really good at that and I thought we’ve had great weeks. Piece of practice and so that’s why um I have faith is that I know how these guys are working and how hard these guys are pushing to be even better and so now it’s just about putting it together on game day, um, which I’ve seen these guys do before and so I, I have faith that we’ll do that. How positive Patrick, was it for you because we didn’t get to ask you this last week, how positive was it for you to see Xavier on the practice field to get *** couple of days with him, and what are you hoping to reestablish with him if he is able to go on Sunday? Yeah, I think more than anything is having him out there is *** threat in general. I mean, he, he, he can at any moment take *** *** pass and short or long, and he could take it to the house. And so, um, having him out in the practice field was very encouraging, very encouraging last week because I mean, obviously, um, we didn’t know after that injury in Brazil, but, um, seeing him out there, I mean he wanted to be wanted to stay out there. It was kind of like holding him back and so, um, hopefully we can go through *** good week of practice and, and have him out there, um, but if not, guys will step up and guys will make plays and so. Um, I’m just excited to to get those guys back and, uh, be able to go out there and, uh, try to have some success on offense better than we did this last week. I’m sure you’re too busy to be thinking much about this, but sometimes the 30th birthday is *** reflective time. I, I just wonder if it’s *** particularly meaningful birthday to you and, and what, what thoughts you have about that. Yeah, I mean, it’s, it’s meaningful in *** sense. I, I, it’s always hard for me, my birthday in general, um, especially this year with the losses, but being early in the season, you’re so focused on football and trying to get us going. In the right direction, um, but we celebrated in the offseason, um, and, and we went down and I hung out with some of my friends, uh, we all grew up together and, um, you see them and like I, I’m *** little ahead of them, but all of them, uh, their wives are pregnant and like they’re, they’re getting there, they’re finally like their jobs, um, that that they’re gonna have for the rest of their lives and stuff like that. And so it is cool to see everybody moving and moving on in life and building their own families and, uh, see how we, we’ve came from Little League baseball to where we are now. And he said you, you feel you, you told him you don’t feel any different today. No, I feel, I feel the same. I got kids, man. I’ve been 30 forever. You mentioned the, the pocket protection, I guess, uh, with it being *** new offensive line initially here, how, how much confidence do you have that you can go through your progression and you have the time? I have confidence in it. I just got to continue to show that on game days. I think, uh, that’s probably the biggest thing I, I saw is that there was times where I left the pocket early, um, this last week, even on some of the runs, and I’m like if I could just sit in that pocket and trust those guys, they’re gonna protect. I mean, that’s *** good Eagles defensive line, obviously and. Um, we’re up against another great challenge, but the more I trust him, I think the better the offense will be. And so, um, I’m gonna continue to do that and, and try to hang in that pocket and make throws on the field. You mentioned having the confidence to make those kinds of throws, but how much of that also has, has applied to some of the struggles on third down that y’all are facing now? Yeah, I mean, I mean, obviously you wanna continue to get the chains moving, but there’s *** time and *** place where you gotta take the shots down the field and even like the throw to taekwondo I had down the sideline that barely missed, uh, early in the game. Um, I thought that was the right decision. It’s just, we just didn’t execute it at the right time. And so, um, you look back on that stuff on, on film and you have to take those shots cause those are shots that can change games and Um, but knowing when to do that and when to just move the chains and do stuff like that is something that we’ll continue to work on. Uh, Patrick, you guys haven’t had *** lot of success in the run game, the, the cold runs, not so with your scrambles and everything, but, uh, the analytics say that they’re not really stacking the box on you. And is that, you know, *** big part of the problem is that you’re going to the runs when the alignment says, hey, that’s what we need to do, and you’re not getting the productivity there. Um, I think it’s something that you continue to trust in. I mean, that’s, that’s part of football is being able to trust in and. Run game and, and whenever they are in the, the light boxes run the, run the football and force them to come down to throw some of the shots down the field. Um, I think that’s, that will come together even more and more as the O line continues to gel and, um, the running backs can gel with the O line as well. And so, um, more than just pass protection, I mean, when you have 5, when you have two different offense two new offensive linemen joining in, um, it’s about building that chemistry and so I think as the season goes on, they’ll continue to get better at that. Patrick, how how much do you feel *** record like whether You know, it’s it’s last season, whether it is 0 and 2 theum we feel differently based on what you did the last week? Um, I think, obviously just being 0 and 2, there’s ***, there’s more urgency than even last week. I mean, and I felt like we were very urgent last week, so, uh, um, definitely new territory as far as being 02, but knowing that, um, we got the guys for it, you know, we have the mindset of going out there and being even better and so, um, uh, in my eyes it looks like what it’s like what an opportunity, what an opportunity to prove who we are as the Kansas City Chiefs is, um, coming back from 0 and 2 and trying to build up, um, to win *** big football game on Sunday Night Football, um, and try to get our season going. In the right direction from there earlier in your career we didn’t see you like lower your shoulder like you’ve been doing, uh, getting contacted that’s something that you’re doing now just to, you know, give boost energy to the team or get *** spark or, um, I think just pick and choosing I think more than anything. It’s, it’s just knowing when to when to do it and when not to do it, protecting yourself, but still, um, being *** football player and *** competitor, um, so I think that that’s, that’s it more than anything and then Brad says to Taco Bell, so that that does it for me too. Yeah, uh, hat trick for you playing on Sunday Night Football. What’s different about that than playing on any other day or night? Um, I, I’ve always loved Sunday Night Football, you know, you grow up, you watch Sunday Night Football, and, um, you, you get the, you get the, the spotlight on you. Um, it’s night game, that you get the lights get brighter, um, and you get to showcase who you are, and I think it’s ***, it’s *** great opportunity for us. I mean, obviously with the start that we have, we want to prove that we’re *** better football team than we show in these first two weeks and, and Sunday Night Football will be the perfect time to do it.