Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce (87) stands on the sidelines during their preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium on Aug. 9, 2025. Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Biggest Improvement Needed for the Chiefs Ahead of Seahawks

Originally posted on Kansas City Chiefs on SI
By Dominic Minchella | Last updated Aug 11, 2025 12:00 PM ET

The Kansas City Chiefs can put their first preseason game behind them as they lost to the Arizona Cardinals by the final score of 20-17. The Chiefs had their opportunities to take the lead back and hold onto it; however, one of the biggest reasons the Chiefs lost is that they beat themselves.

The Chiefs scored 17 points and kept the game close, sure. But when looking at the final box score for the game, penalties came back to bite the Chiefs more than they came to bite the Cardinals. Last season, the Chiefs were on the winning side of close games, but the tides turned in this one.

Overall, the Chiefs were penalized 11 times for 113 yards, while the Cardinals were penalized five times for 47 yards. Despite matching the Cardinals in interceptions thrown and without losing a fumble, Kansas City beat itself more than Arizona beat Kansas City.

That being said, the Chiefs need to be more disciplined going into their next preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks. The Seahawks tied their first preseason game against the Chiefs' AFC West division rival Las Vegas Raiders, showcasing that there is an opening for victory if they play their cards correctly.

At the end of the day, the Chiefs practice as hard as they play, and if the preseason game has any implications on how they will play this season, they need to correct it sooner rather than later. As we know, head coach Andy Reid runs a tough training camp, and with a few days left in training camp before strictly the preseason, the Chiefs have to fix these hiccups.

One specific penalty against the Chiefs when they took on Arizona came against undrafted free agent wide receiver Mac Dalena. After securing a catch, flags were thrown against the Chiefs for Dalena supposedly grabbing the defender's face mask, but it was easily a soft call.

While the Chiefs are unlikely to eliminate penalties for the regular season, they will be able to limit them. If they can clean things up before taking on the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 1 of the regular season, they should be in a good position moving forward.

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This article first appeared on Kansas City Chiefs on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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