BJ Thompson Suffers Seizure & Cardiac Arrest, Mecole Hardman Re-Signs, & OTAs Wrap-Up

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Today we bring you lots of Chiefs news, NFL headlines, and more.

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— Luke Gromer

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During the Chiefs’ special teams meeting last Thursday morning, defensive lineman BJ Thompson, the Chiefs’ 2023 5th-round draft pick out of Stephen F. Austin, suffered a seizure and then went into cardiac arrest.

When Thompson started seizing, Harrison Butker ran to the training room to alert the trainers. Shortly after the trainers arrived on the scene, Thompson went into cardiac arrest and they administered an AED.

Paramedics then arrived and transported Thompson to KU Med where he was heavily sedated and on a ventilator until Friday morning.

According to Thompson's agent, Chris Turnage, Thompson was awake and alert on Friday morning.

Sources: Chiefs YouTube & ESPN

This past Saturday morning, Rashee Rice spoke publicly for the first time since his automobile accident in Dallas in April.

Rice and teammates Hollywood Brown, Skyy Moore, and Mecole Hardman attended a youth football camp at Central High School in Kansas City.

When asked about the incident by the media, Rice said:

Source: Joshua Brisco of SI.com

The Chiefs signed WR Mecole Hardman to a one-year, 1.25M deal last week.

Hardman was the Chiefs 2nd-round draft pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. Hardman signed with the Jets last offseason, before being traded back to the Chiefs mid-season.

Hardman caught the game-winning touchdown pass from Patrick Mahomes in overtime of Super Bowl 58.

Andy Reid, Carson Wentz, George Karlaftis, and Justin Reid spoke to the media.

Andy Reid

• On the BJ Thompson situation: “That’s a tough situation… It’s never fun. If it had to happen, [there is] no better place than right here where you have the support unit that knows what to do… Afterward, we had a team meeting.”

• On Rashee Rice’s involvement in a shooting while he attended SMU: “We knew enough to draft him, then we just went with the process. We found that it was satisfactory for us.”

• The food at the White House: “They do a great job. I’ve had a chance to meet all the chefs… It was all good… Everything was bite-sized, so that gets dangerous.”

Carson Wentz

• On joining the Chiefs offense: “It’s been fun. I love kind of just learning… Love diving into this and seeing the uniqueness of it… It’s a cool system.”

• On Patrick Mahomes: “He just processes the game really [quickly]… He’s playing so quick out there.”

• On transitioning to being a backup: “It’s different… At the end of the day, I’m still preparing to be ready…”

• On Louis Rees-Zammit: “I’m really excited to see him in preseason… It’s been impressive how [quickly] he’s picked things up.”

George Karlaftis

• On BJ Thompson: “I’m just glad he’s doing good…”

• On Chris Jones re-signing: “That’s my guy man… I’m glad he’s back…”

• On practicing Jiu-Jitsu: “It teaches you a lot about leverage…”

Justin Reid

• On the charity softball game: “[It] felt good to actually win this year. Appreciate all the fans and guys that came out to support…”

• On Jaden Hicks: “He’s going to be a player for us this year, he’s going to help us.”

• On the new kickoff rule: “I’d love to [kickoff]… Special teams make a [huge] difference, and I’m willing to do anything I can to help the team win.”

• On Nazeeh Johnson: “He was on track to start [last year before his injury]… He’s healing remarkably and really moving well.”

Week 1

Chiefs @ Jaguars | Sat, Aug 10, 6:00 pm | 38 the Spot KMCI

Week 2

Lions @ Chiefs | Sat, Aug 17, 3:00 pm | KSHB 41 (NBC)

Week 3

Bears @ Chiefs | Thur, Aug 22, 7:20 pm | 38 the Spot KMCI

Source: Chiefs.com

The Chiefs will hold their three-day mandatory minicamp this week on Tuesday through Thursday, June 11-13.

After the minicamp concludes, there are no team activities until training camp begins.

Source: Arrowhead Pride

We shared the Chiefs 2024 schedule and highlighted four interesting aspects of the schedule in a past newsletter.

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Around the NFL

Headlines

• QB Anthony Richardson (IND) was held out of practice with shoulder soreness

• TE Darren Waller (NYG) announced his retirement from the NFL at the age of 31

• Former Dolphins CB Xavien Howard is being sued and is accused of sending a sexually explicit picture to a teenage boy of his mother because she would not get an abortion

• The Lions admitted that they “violated player work rules pertaining to on-field physical contact pursuant to the Collective Bargaining Agreement” at one of their OTAs and forfeited their June 10th practice

• DL Randy Gregory (TB) is suing the NFL and the Broncos because they didn’t allow him to take medication containing THC even though it was for a disability while he played in Denver

• The Bears and Texans kick off the NFL preseason on August 1st

Chiefs, NFL, and More

Worth the Click

• 🏈 Grab some new Chiefs gear from Rally House*

• 🤯 Travis Kelce revealed a surprising tactic that opponents are using against the Chiefs to try to get an advantage

• ❄️ The Vikings will wear an all-white “Winter Warrior” alternate uniform this season

• 🏀 The Lakers are preparing to offer UCONN HC Dan Hurley a massive contract to be their next HC

• ⏱ Dolphins Coach Mike McDaniel has come up with a clever way to remind the team about their 24-year playoff draught

• ⚾️ The Royals accomplished an incredible 8-run comeback last Friday night

• 🎥 This Chiefs best of players retro version is a fun watch

• 🎟 Grab your Chiefs tickets for any home or road game this season*

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