Believe it or not, the rookie is looking forward to going up against talented pass rusher Trey Hendrickson.
To say there is a lot of water under the bridge in the Kansas City Chiefs versus the Cincinnati Bengals rivalry is like calling the Euphrates a quaint little creek.
Whether it be Bengals players calling Arrowhead Stadium “Burrowhead,” tight end Travis Kelce calling the mayor of Cincinnati a “jabroni,” or defensive end Frank Clark telling the entire Bengals team to “take their bum ass all the way back to Cincinnati,” there is no love loss between these two teams.
Although rookie left tackle Kingsley Suamataia wasn’t with the Chiefs for previous clashes with those no-good chili-eaters, he told reporters on Wednesday that it didn’t take long to get indoctrinated into the feud.
“I’m a rookie, but I have the same fire like everybody else has against the guys (going) against us — it’s my family versus y’all,” he said.
His offensive tackle counterpart, Jawaan Taylor, said he liked what he saw out of his fellow tackle in his first NFL game.
“I feel like he did very well for his rookie debut,” said Taylor. “He’s going to be a great player for this team, and we look forward to seeing him play again on Sunday.”
For his part, Suamataia said there are some things he needs to clean up, but overall, he is pleased with how he played last Thursday.
When asked why he thought Kansas City could walk off the field with the victory in their season opener, he said they were the game's biggest bully. A physical mentality is something Suamataia said he’s planning on carrying over into Week 2.
“Us and the Bengals, we have a history,” said the left tackle. “They’re a great defense across the board. They got great linebackers and a great defensive line especially, but you know we’re ready to go out there — and you know it all starts up front... we’re ready to be the bigger bully again.”
The great defensive line he’s referring to is led by defensive end Trey Hendrickson, who registered 17.5 sacks in 2023 — and, according to Pro Football Focus, had a 26.1% win rate against the New England Patriots last week.
Calling out Henderson by name, Suamataia called it a blessing to face such a talented opponent but noted that he also faces some pretty good edge rushers every day in practice.
“I have great D-ends that I go against that help me prepare for the week,” he said.
Practicing like you’re in a real game situation is something that Suamataia said he’s learned from playing with quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
“All these reps count — pay attention to the details, so when you get to the game, you just have fun, and you can play free.”
