The Chiefs limited Thornhill’s snaps in his first game back after his 2019 knee injury.
Kansas City Chiefs DB Juan Thornhill made his first start since suffering a season-ending knee injury in Week 17 of last season. Andy Reid spoke a bit about Thornhill’s 2020 debut on Monday, explaining that the team decided to limit his snaps out of caution in his return from injury.
“We did, we watched him,” Reid said of limiting Thornhill’s snaps. “He actually came out feeling good, which is what we wanted. We were cautious with him. He wanted to play more, to his credit, but it all worked out well. In particular, the day after, which was important for us.”
Thornhill only played in 38 defensive snaps which were good for 64 percent of the Chiefs’ total defensive snaps. It was still good for the eighth-most snaps of any Kansas City defender on Thursday. Tedric Thompson, who signed with the Chiefs as a free agent during training camp, spelled Thornhill on 21 snaps during the course of the game.
Thornhill recorded just one tackle during the game, but Reid said that Thornhill came out of it feeling good, which is the most important thing. The day after the game Thornhill sent out a tweet that gave some insight into his thoughts on how Week 1 went for him.
Thornhill was able to get his feet under him in Week 1 after several months of not being able to participate in football activities. Remember, he didn’t even have any preseason games where he could ease himself back into the swing of things ahead of the season.
Now that he’s knocked the rust off and the Chiefs know that he’s healthy, they can continue to increase his workload. Look for Thornhill to perhaps see a greater share of the snaps in Week 2 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
Here is the full list of players that didn’t practice today:
DE Alex Okafor (Calf)
DE Demone Harris (Back)
DE Mike Danna (Calf)
LB Damien Wilson (Ankle)
WR Tyreek Hill (Hamstring)
TE Deon Yelder (Groin)
TE Ricky Seals-Jones (Leg)
OT Martinas Rankin (PUP)
The injury news today was mostly good, with several players returning to practice in some capacity. Eric Fisher returned to practice but remains in the concussion protocol. He was cleared for the padless practice today at Arrowhead Stadium, but we’ll see if he’s cleared for contact work over the next few days.
Frank Clark returned to practice for Kansas City after missing the past few days with a stomach virus. That certainly helps the Chiefs as they were thin on depth at the defensive end position when Mike Danna was injured in Friday’s practice.
Juan Thornhill was also out and working a bit more during practice, participating in some team drills. He hadn’t yet been cleared for contact as of the past three practice sessions. There wasn’t much contact today in the 10-10-10 practice. Andy Reid did say they intended to ramp-up his work as they go. We’ll see if he’s able to do more once the pads come back on.
We found out the official word on some previous injuries today. Demone Harris is dealing with a back injury. Damien Wilson is dealing with an ankle injury. Rookie LB Willie Gay Jr. replaced Wilson on the first-team offense in practice.
The injury list is shrinking for the Chiefs which is a good thing as they head into the final stretch of training camp before the regular season.
There’s no timetable for either Chiefs player returning from the PUP list.
The Kansas City Chiefs don’t currently have a timetable for two players who are currently on the Physically Unable to Perform list.
Both DB Juan Thornhill and OL Martinas Rankin started games for the Chiefs in 2019. Rankin suffered a knee injury during the Week 10 loss against the Titans. Thornhill suffered a knee injury during the Week 17 win over the Chargers.
Now, Kansas City looks to be without both players through the beginning of training camp and possibly longer. Chiefs HC Andy Reid spoke on the prospect of both players returning to action during his Sunday media availability.
“We’ll have to see how and when [Juan Thornhill is able to return to practice],” Reid said. “He is doing well at this time. Once we get into that phase where we’re moving him around — the trainers are moving him around a little bit more — we’ll be able to tell. But he’s not ready, obviously, right now.”
It’d seem that right now, Thornhill isn’t doing much with training staff in terms of moving around. That’s not exactly a good sign with just over a month until the season opener against the Houston Texans.
Reid reiterated the same thing with Rankin and his return from injury.
“I’d say the same thing,” Reid said of Rankin. “I mean, they’re all making good progress, it’s just a matter of when they can come back. As they ramp them up — the trainers — we’ll see. But neither one is ready to go right now.”
It’s good to know that both players are making good progress at the very least. It’s entirely possible that both players start the 2020 season on the PUP list, which would cost them at minimum the first six weeks of the year before they could practice and be activated to the 53-man roster.
Many figured this move was coming for the stud second-year safety. Thornhill suffered a torn ACL in the final regular-season game of the 2019 season against the Los Angeles Chargers. Thornhill is still less than eight months removed from his surgery to repair the injury, but he’s been highly motivated to get back.
Thornhill’s running mate, Tyrann Mathieu, has been in this situation before. In Week 14 of his rookie season with the Arizona Cardinals, Mathieu suffered a torn ACL and LCL, ending his 2013 season prematurely. Two years later, Mathieu would suffer another ACL injury Week 15. He knows what it’s like the be anxious to get back from that type of devastating injury.
On Thursday, ahead of the announcement that the Chiefs had sent Thornhill to the PUP list, Mathieu was asked about his expectations for Thornhill in his return.
“I would probably say my hope for Juan is obviously that he takes it easy, and he doesn’t put any extra stress on himself,” Mathieu told reporters. “He plays for a good football team, and I think we have the ability to play late into the season. Him being a young guy, I think the most important thing for him is his health. So, as long as he can kind of keep that in front of him, being anxious to play, I think he will make the right decisions. I feel like Rick and his staff are pretty transparent. They’re probably the best in the business when you’re talking about coming back from injuries and whatnot. So, I know he’ll be ready to roll, but obviously, you don’t want him to feel like he has to put too much pressure on himself early on.”
In a sense, Mathieu knows exactly what Thornhill is going through. He went through the same type of late-season knee injury in his rookie campaign. As Mathieu stood on the podium, he almost sought to reassure Thornhill that the rest of the safety group can handle things while he gets right. That there’s a balance between pushing yourself and putting too much pressure on yourself to get back.
Mathieu also knows that Thornhill is in good hands with Rick Burkholder and the entire Chiefs’ athletic training staff. They’ll get him ready for action, but it’s going to take time and he’s going to need to do the right things. While Thornhill is on the PUP list, he’s able to participate in team meetings and do work with the athletic training staff during practice. He can be removed from the PUP list at any given time during the course of training camp.
Thornhill earned the starting job opposite Mathieu during the course of training camp in 2019. He recorded 58 total tackles, three interceptions, five passes defended and a touchdown in 16 games started during the 2019 season.
Thornhill will start training camp on the physically unable to perform list.
The Kansas City Chiefs have placed safety Juan Thornhill on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list according to the NFL’s official transaction report.
A move to the PUP list means that Thornhill will not be permitted to practice until he’s medically cleared to do so by doctors and athletic training staff in Kansas City. Thornhill suffered a torn ACL during the Chiefs’ Week 17 win against the Los Angeles Chargers. He was sent to the injured reserve list and didn’t participate in the Chiefs’ postseason run after a tremendous rookie season.
Thornhill has spent the offseason rehabbing his injury and looks to be making some progress in his return to action.
Thornhill can participate in Chiefs’ team meetings. He’s allowed to do conditioning and work with the training staff at the team facilities. He just can’t practice with the team while he’s on the PUP list. He can be activated from the PUP list at any time during training camp.
If Thornhill is not activated by the end of training camp, he’ll be transferred to the reserve/PUP list for the regular season. If that happens he won’t be able to practice for the first six weeks to start the season. After six weeks another six-week window begins when he can return to practice. By the end of those six weeks, Kansas City would have to decide to activate him or send him to the injured reserve list.
It was pretty clear that this move was coming after the Chiefs decided to sign Tedric Thompson, who also plays the deep safety position. This decision should allow Thornhill to ease back into things as he comes off of a tough injury. Keep in mind, he’s not even eight months removed from surgery to repair the torn ligament in his knee.
During a dominant rookie campaign in 2019, Thornhill recorded 58 total tackles, three interceptions, including one for a touchdown, and five passes defended and 16 games started. He didn’t give up a single play of 20 or more yards during the entire season.
Thornhill signals that he’s been cleared to resume running.
Kansas City Chiefs defensive back Juan Thornhill took to Twitter on Monday and signaled an important step in his recovery from his ACL injury.
Thornhill suffered an ACL injury in Week 17 of the 2019 season against the Los Angeles Chargers. While Thornhill is tracking to be ready for the start of the 2020 NFL season, there are certain mile markers you look for in the ACL recovery process. One of those markers is returning to non-football workout activities.
Posting an encouraging message on Twitter, Thornhill appears to have been cleared to resume running. From my understanding, this is something that takes place anywhere from 12-20 weeks after ACL surgery. Thornhill didn’t have his surgery until the middle of January, so he’s right around that 18-week point.
Got the wheels moving again 🏃🏽♂️💨
— The_Juan_And_Only (@Juan_Thornhill) May 11, 2020
If all goes well for Thornhill, he should soon be able to resume non-contact football-related activities such as cutting and lateral movement drills. The most important factor is to build up the strength to resume those types of activities.
Thornhill isn’t letting the COVID-19 pandemic get in the way of his rehab and recovery either. He is working with the brand TRXTraining to ensure that he’s on top of his training while he maintains social distancing guidelines at home.
A standout rookie during the 2019 season, Thornhill is a big part of the Chiefs’ plans on the defensive side of the ball moving forward. When he’s ready to return from his injury the team will look for him to continue to work opposite Tyrann Mathieu, forming one of the best safety duos in the NFL.
Kansas City Chiefs DB Juan Thornhill suffered an ACL injury during the final regular-season game of 2019.
Kansas City Chiefs DB Juan Thornhill was of the best defensive rookies in the NFL last season. You could see him get more comfortable with his role in the defense with each week.
Unfortunately, his season was ended prematurely when he suffered a non-contact knee injury in the final game of the regular-season, tearing his ACL. There has been some speculation on Thornhill’s recovery timeline, but now we have word from the man himself on when he expects to be ready to return to play.
“Finally got my full range of motion,” Thornhill said. “They say I should be ready for camp. That’s always good news. But I feel like, for the most part, everything is going pretty well.”
While the training camp schedule for 2020 has yet to be released, it typically begins late July. I’d expect Saturday, Aug. 1 to be the start date this year. It’s not clear if Thornhill would be ready at the onset of camp, but any work that he could get in before the start of the regular season would be ideal.
Thornhill could be a driving factor in the Chiefs’ ability to repeat as Super Bowl champions. He had to watch the postseason from the sidelines and even though he’s still a Super Bowl champion, Thornhill wants to experience playing in the game himself.
“It’s always special when you’re a Super Bowl champion so I can’t complain about that,” Thornhill said. “But at the same time, I’m super hungry to get back out there because I want to get back to a Super Bowl and actually be able to play in that game because this is a dream of mine that I’ve always had as a kid.”
If Thornhill returns to form, he’ll have a chance to help the team get to Super Bowl LV and live out his childhood dream.
The Kansas City Chiefs received some good news on Juan Thornhill’s knee injury.
Kansas City Chiefs safety Juan Thornhill missed the entire postseason run after tearing his ACL during Week 17’s victory over the Los Angeles Chargers. The young defensive back has been quietly rehabbing since the injury, but some promising news has been revealed regarding his status for next season.
According to NFL Network’s James Palmer, the 24-year old is recovering quickly and should be on the field to begin the 2020 NFL season. Thornhill had a strong rookie campaign starting all sixteen regular-season games at Safety alongside All-Pro Tyrann Mathieu. Thornhill’s stats included three interceptions and a touchdown before ultimately being lost for the playoffs.
Expectation is for #Cheifs S Juan Thornhill to be ready for the start of the season. When he gets going during training camp is still TBD. I’m told his ACL injury actually turned out to be in better shape than expected when the surgery actually happened. Good news.
The Chiefs are on a mission to retain the core defensive players from last season in hopes of replicating the efficiency that helped push the team to a championship. Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo’s first season on the job provided an increase in productivity for the unit, finishing as one of the best in the league by the end of 2019. Thornhill’s early return by the start of the new season will only help general manager Brett Veach’s overall plan.
A standout from the get-go, Kansas City Chiefs DB Juan Thornhill now faces a comeback after an injury ended his 2019 prematurely.
[jwplayer rs5QtsrP-ThvAeFxT]
The Kansas City Chiefs added six draft picks in the 2019 NFL Draft and each of those rookies made contributions during the season and postseason. This draft had a mix of offensive and defensive players compared to the 2018 NFL Draft, which was primarily defensive players for the Chiefs. Let’s take a look at Juan Thornhill’s 2019 season and see what we can project for the future.
Virginia DB Juan Thornhill – 63 overall
Stat
2019 totals
Games played
16
Games started
16
Defensive Snaps
996
Special Teams Snaps
48
Total Tackles
57
Solo Tackles
41
Interceptions
3
Touchdowns
1
Passes defended
5
2019 season review:
Thornhill came in and made his presence felt early. He was a star of training camp, leading all Chiefs’ defenders in interceptions. He was a bit gun shy when the preseason got underway and didn’t initially stand out, but he did enough to earn the trust of the coaching staff. He unseated veteran safety Daniel Sorensen for the starting spot opposite Tyrann Mathieu to become the only opening day starter of this draft class.
“One of the things I like, his open-field tackling,” Chiefs DB coach Sam Madison said of Thornhill at the midseason mark. “He’s been doing really good in that area. He’s improved from Week 1. We try to explain to him that this isn’t college anymore and these quarterbacks are going to lie to you. They’re going to look one way to hopefully move you and then they’re going to come back. He’s gotten better with that and the play down in the endzone when he came up with the interception, it just shows that he can get there. When you have a middle-of-the-field post safety, you want him to be able to get from two-to-three yards outside the numbers to two-to-three yards outside the numbers and he’s able to do that. He’s showing his range and hopefully, he can keep getting better.”
From a season-long perspective, Thornhill was remarkable in coverage, allowing just 0.22 yards per coverage snap according to Pro Football Focus. That number was good for the sixth-fewest in the NFL among all defensive backs. He gave up a single play of 20 or more yards one time during the entire 16-game 2019 season.
Unfortunately, Thornhill’s season ended prematurely as he suffered a torn ACL in the regular-season finale. He was placed on injured reserve before the postseason run that would make the Chiefs Super Bowl LIV champions.
2020 season outlook:
Thornhill seems motivated in his recovery, but right now we don’t even have all the details on his injury. We know that he tore his ACL, but we don’t know if there was any accompanying ligament damage. Those details can make all the difference when it comes to the recovery timeline.
The 2020 season outlook for Thornhill is very much a wait-and-see type of scenario. Even if he returns by the preseason or start of the regular season, there could be an adjustment period before he looks like the players we saw dominate as a rookie. It’s also possible that he comes back as sharp as ever and prepared to pick up right where he left off. With Jordan Lucas and Kendall Fuller set to leave in free agency, Kansas City will be hoping to see Thornhill sooner than later.
When the Chiefs signed defensive back Tyrann Mathieu in the offseason, they hoped Mathieu would help the defense. He’s done more than that.
Through the first half of the 2019 season, it looked like the Chiefs were going to have to take the same trip to the postseason they had in 2018 — riding Patrick Mahomes all the way, and hoping their defense didn’t blow it all up. The last straw for Andy Reid and the Chiefs’ front office for ex-defensive coordiantor Bob Sutton was Kansas City’s loss to the Patriots in the 2018 AFC Championship game, when the Chiefs never got the ball in overtime, and New England marched down the field on a 13-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Sutton’s defense was helpless to stop it, and things had to change.
To replace Sutton, the Chiefs hired Steve Spagnuolo, the architect of the 2007 Giants defense that stunned the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII. Spagnuolo’s multiple fronts and aggressive coverages provided a different template than Sutton’s far more passive approach, and though it took a while for everything to gel, the Chiefs now have a championship-caliber defense at exactly the right time.
Through the season’s first nine weeks, Kansas City allowed 14 touchdowns and had just six interceptions, though their seven dropped interceptions (tied with Cincinnati for the league lead) was a precursor of better things to come. Kansas City allowed 7.02 yards per attempt, and an opposing QBR of 90.50. Not the worst in the league in any of these departments, but hardly the kind of defense Spagnuolo or Reid wanted. Their opponent completion rate of 62.96% ranked 11th-best in the league.
Rex Burkhead’s game-winning touchdown run in the 2019 AFC Championship game spelled the end of Bob Sutton’s tenure. (Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports)
But from Weeks 10-17, the change has been remarkable. The Chiefs are tied with the Ravens for the fewest passing touchdowns allowed with seven, and have picked off 10 passes — tied with the Falcons, Browns, Colts, Saints, and Dolphins for the most in that span. They also have seven dropped picks in the second half of the season Only the Steelers, Packers, and Ravens have allowed a lower completion percentage than Kansas City’s 57.36%.
The Chiefs have allowed 6.22 yards per attempt — only the Ravens, 49ers, and Steelers have been better, and only the Steelers have allowed a lower QBR than Kansas City’s 68.72. The Chiefs’ defensive Positive Play Rate (the percentage of plays in which an opposing offense has Expected Points Added over zero) has dropped from 46% to 42%.
Perhaps most importantly for their playoff prospects, the Chiefs have become the kind of team that can beat other postseason entrants without a superhuman effort from Mahomes — or even with Mahomes in the game. Playing through injuries as he has, Mahomes saw a drastic dip in production from his 2018 MVP season, but the Chiefs beat the Vikings, 26-23 in Week 9 with Mahomes on the bench and Matt Moore throwing for 275 yards and a touchdown. They lost a close one, 31-24, to the Packers the week before with Moore as their quarterback. They beat the Patriots, 23-16 in Week 14, with Mahomes challenged by New England’s top pass defense, managing 283 yards and a touchdown. And now, they have a revenge match on Sunday in the divisional round against the Texans, who beat them 31-24 in Week 6, back when this defense wasn’t what it would become.
Players such as cornerback Charvarius Ward and defensive back Tyrann Mathieu have thrived this season under defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
The unquestionable key to this turnaround, besides everyone getting on the same page with Spagnuolo’s more aggressive man and match concepts, has been defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, the former Cardinals and Texans star who signed a three-year, $42 million contract with the Chiefs in March. As has been the case through his career, Mathieu is a game-changer from every possible position. This season, he’s played 1,080 snaps — 82 at the defensive line, 315 as a box safety or nickel/dime linebacker, 483 as a slot cornerback, 27 as an outside cornerback, and 173 as a free safety.
“He wears a lot of hats,” defensive backs coach Sam Madison recently said, via ESPN’s Adam Teicher. “Early in the year, we just wanted to put guys in situations to be comfortable. He understands the defense. … Since he’s been at LSU, he’s played all over the place. It was just a natural fit for him. He’s taken to it very well. I talked to him a few weeks ago, telling him just to be patient and try not to go out there and find the plays [but] let them come to him. That’s what he’s been doing.”
Mathieu’s transformation in Spagnuolo’s schemes mirrors the overall defensive improvement.
“He’s the glue,” Spagnuolo has said of Mathieu. “He’s the guy that can get in the huddle in practice and say, ‘Hey, we need to step it up.’ You need guys like that. That stuff, I value as a coordinator. It makes my job a lot easier.”
As a slot defender through the first half of the season, he allowed 16 receptions on 21 targets for 132 yards, a touchdown, no interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 107.6. From Week 10 on, he increased his efficiency with 17 catches allowed on 27 slot targets for 110 yards, no touchdowns, and an opponent passer rating of 40.2.
As a safety, his coverage improvement has been similarly transformative. In the first half of the season as a box or deep safety, he allowed 23 catches on 34 targets for 221 yards, two touchdowns, one interception, and an opponent passer rating of 92.9. In the second half of the season, he allowed 28 completions on 42 targets for 193 yards, no touchdowns, three interceptions, and an opponent passer rating of 47.0.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid knows his safeties — he had Eric Berry from 2013 through 2018 in Kansas City, and Hall-of-Famer Brian Dawkins in Philadelphia from 1999 through 2008. As far as Reid is concerned, Mathieu belongs in that discussion.
“This organization was blessed to have Eric Berry… a great leader, tough, all those things. Before that I was with Brian Dawkins. I’ve been lucky to be around some really good safeties. They’re all different in their own way but they’re all great football players with great instincts and good leaders. They lead a different way. This kid here, he’s a special kid. He’s not the biggest guy. You’re not looking at one of those huge safeties but, man, is he a good football player. He just gets it.”
Leadership is one thing. The 5-foot-9, 190-pound Mathieu also brings top-tier athleticism, field awareness, and the ability to read a play and snuff it right out — from anywhere on the field.
