Chiefs' preseason offense was all Butker — until Emmitt Johnson broke through
Kansas City's first touchdown of the preseason didn't come until late in the third quarter in Tampa, with Harrison Butker accounting for every point before rookie back Emmitt Johnson punched one in from a yard out
Through two preseason games, Kansas City's offense had produced exactly zero touchdowns and a kicker with a perfect scorecard. Both streaks ended Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.
NFL MVP of the preseason Harrison Butker good from 58 yards. Chiefs 6, Buccaneers 0, 1:41 left in the first half. Chiefs have scored 18 points in the preseason, all from Butker.View on X →
Matt Derrick (@mattderrick): NFL MVP of the preseason Harrison Butker good from 58 yards. Chiefs 6, Buccaneers 0, 1:41 left in the first half. Chiefs have scored 18 points in the preseason, all from Butker.
Every point the Chiefs had scored this preseason — 18 of them through three quarters in Tampa — belonged to Harrison Butker, who drilled from 58 yards and famously connected on a 69-yarder earlier in the evening. His night even had a preseason-appropriate absurd capper: after Jared Wiley's penalty pushed an extra point back to a 43-yard attempt, Butker doinked it off the upright. As beat writer Matt Derrick put it, it's the preseason so nothing matters.
The offense finally crossed the goal line when undrafted rookie running back Emmitt Johnson powered in from a yard out — no flags, Chiefs' first preseason touchdown of the year, and a genuine roster-bubble moment for a back fighting for a spot behind Isiah Pacheco.
Emmitt Johnson from a yard out, no flags, Chiefs with their first TD of the preseason. Go crazy, folks. Chiefs 15, Bucs 7, 2:26 left in the third quarter.View on X →
Matt Derrick (@mattderrick): Emmitt Johnson from a yard out, no flags, Chiefs with their first TD of the preseason. Go crazy, folks. Chiefs 15, Bucs 7, 2:26 left in the third quarter.
Defensively, safety Jaden Hicks gave the analytics crowd something to talk about: his sack clocked at 2.31 seconds to throw, per Next Gen Stats, the second-fastest mark of any NFL player across Week 2 of the preseason. With final cuts looming August 30, Hicks is making himself very hard to cut.