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Jul 29, 2025; Glendale, AZ, USA; Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (18) during training camp at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

3 Arizona Cardinals to Watch vs Kansas City Chiefs

Originally posted on Arizona Cardinals on SI
By Donnie Druin | Last updated Aug 9, 2025 3:56 PM ET

The Arizona Cardinals play host to the Kansas City Chiefs later today in the first of three preseason matchups for the organization.

After a tough training camp concluded earlier this week, Jonathan Gannon's crew will have the opportunity to hit someone other than themselves for the first time in 2025.

That other side just so happens to be the Chiefs, a team perennially competing for and winning Super Bowls, which will feature Patrick Mahomes for roughly a quarter tonight.

"We're going to get it, because he's the best of the best. So the guys are excited. I'm excited," Gannon told reporters when asked about facing Mahomes and the rest of Kansas City's starters.

"One of the reasons is you want to play different people. And you want to play who you're going to be playing in the season, and that's what we're going to get on Saturday night. So that'll be good for us."

From top to bottom the Chiefs are a talented team, which will give the Cardinals plenty to evaluate over the course of tonight's game.

Three players to watch when kickoff arrives:

Marvin Harrison Jr.

Marvin Harrison Jr. has looked every bit of the receiver many had hoped he would after a "disappointing" 2024 rookie campaign, and through every camp practice he was healthy for, the sophomore wideout dominated.

Now, the next step in the process is translating that to different competition.

It's unknown how much Arizona's starters will play tonight, but we're not destined to get 60 minutes of Harrison being followed by Trent McDuffie.

Whatever window of playing time Harrison receives, we're all intrigued to see how different he looks in a live football setting.

Can any of the training camp juice carry into preseason action?

Will Johnson

It's a similar tune for rookie cornerback Will Johnson, who has impressed in camp with a considerable hype train following him.

Johnson looks like the cornerback we watched at Michigan: A lengthy but cerebral guy who has a nose for the football.

What better introduction than facing Mahomes and offensive mastermind Andy Reid? That's like acing a pop quiz and being asked to take the final right as the semester begins.

Johnson could see extended action tonight considering he's a rookie, and we're here for all the reps possible.

Trey Benson

We've heard so much about Trey Benson taking the next step from year one to year two.

Benson, a home-run hitter during his time dominating at Florida State - struggled out of the gates early in his rookie career but found his footing towards the end of last season.

Now, the new and improved Benson has gained plenty of praise ahead of his second year as a pro, with many in the building referring to him as another RB1 next to James Conner.

An improved Benson would only make Arizona's rushing attack better, and a first opportunity to show that against a Chiefs rush defense that finished eighth last season is a great audition.

This article first appeared on Arizona Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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