SportsBeat KC

The Chiefs amassed a season-low in total and passing yards. They also lost the time-of-possession battle. And yet they blew out the Denver Broncos 43-16 Sunday. How? Their defense and special teams were terrific. The Chiefs got a touchdown in each phase. And Patrick Mahomes and the offense were good enough to come up with three touchdowns and three field goals. The KC Star’s A-Team of Herbie Teope...

SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast, focuses on two of the more intriguing figures in Sunday’s Chiefs game at Denver against the Broncos: Chiefs running back Le’Veon Bell and Broncos quarterback Drew Lock. Bell signed with the Chiefs about a week ago and will suit up with his new team for the first time. The Chiefs’ coaches spoke highly of Bell this week, so don’t be surprised if he see...

Both teams are coming off road victories when the Chiefs visit the Broncos on Sunday. The Chiefs won at Buffalo, the Broncos at New England. Denver seeks to end Kansas City’s recent dominance in the series with the Chiefs riding streaks of nine games overall and five games in the mile high city into the game. The Star’s A-Team of Sam Mellinger, Vahe Gregorian, Herbie Teope and Sam McDowell, break...

The Kansas State-Kansas series is the fourth longest continuous rivalry in college football at 117 games, and the Jayhawks own a 64-48-5 lead. But it’s been all Wildcats for nearly three decades with victories in 11 straight and 23 of the last 27. Beat writers Kellis Robinett and Gary Bedore talk Sunflower Showdown on SportsBeat KC with host Blair Kerkhoff and wonder about the game’s meaning to bo...

The Chiefs, a power running team? It looked that way in their 26-17 victory at Buffalo on Monday. For the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era the Chiefs gained more yards on the ground (245) than through the air (211). And it happened despite some shuffling on the offensive line. The triumph was the topic on a postgame SportsBeat Live on Monday with writers Sam Mellinger, Vahe Gregorian and Sam...

Are you ready for some football, some Monday afternoon football? Strange times indeed. Chiefs at Bills, 4:05 p.m., kickoff thanks to COVID-19 and rescheduling. The Chiefs are the first team in NFL history to play on Monday three times in four weeks. But at least the game is being played. And it should be a good one. These teams started 4-0, lost as favorites last week and which one is going to reb...

The Chiefs have added a weapon in running back Le’Veon Bell. Now what? Bell won’t suit up for the Chiefs against the Buffalo Bills Monday but should be ready to go after that. How will he fit into the Chiefs’ offense? The A-Team of Sam Mellinger, Vahe Gregorian, Sam McDowell and Herbie Teope break it down on SportsBeat KC with host Blair Kerkhoff. The Chiefs-Bills game is a big one, a battle of di...

No game for Missouri this week after the scheduled opponent, Vanderbilt, called in sick with COVID-19. That’s the way it goes in sports these days, and the SEC’s making some of the biggest news in this regard. LSU-Florida is also called off, and Alabama coach Nick Saban has contracted the virus and will not be on the sideline for Saturday’s game against Georgia. On SportsBeat KC, Mizzou beat write...

Kansas State received some tough news this week when starting quarterback Skylar Thompson was ruled out for the season with an injury. The Wildcats have continued to win with Will Howard stepping up, but can K-State keep up the pace, and what of Thompson’s future with eligibility extended to all college football players this season? Beat writer Kellis Robinett provides the breakdown in SportsBeat...

The Royals finished with their best winning percentage since 2017 and head into the off-season with optimism—and plenty of questions. Beat writer Lynn Worthy joins SportsBeat KC host Blair Kerkhoff in discussing the big off-season issues for the Royals, which has already started with minor-league training in Kansas City and Arizona. Among the questions: Who replaces retiring Alex Gordon in left fi...

A loss for the Chiefs had to happen sometime, didn’t it? It wasn’t expected to occur against the AFC West-rival Las Vegas Raiders. But that’s what happened Sunday, as the Raiders left Arrowhead Stadium with a 40-32 triumph. The Chiefs couldn’t handle Raiders quarterback Derek Carr and the Vegas passing offense, especially in the second quarter, when he threw all three of his touchdown passes. And...

Quarterbacks are the story in college football this weekend. There could be a new starter at Kansas State. There will be a new starter at Missouri. And there’s an extra week for quarterback candidates at Kansas to heal. Beat writers Kellis Robinett, Souichi Terada and Gary Bedore cover these topics and more with Blair Kerkhoff on SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast. The Jayhawks are off...

COVID-19 dominoes are falling in the NFL. The Titans-Bills game this weekend is uncertain because of the Titans’ failure to follow protocols, and that could affect the Chiefs the following week because they are scheduled to play at Buffalo Thursday. The Chiefs’ and NFL’s handling of COVID-19, plus the Chiefs’ progress through the first quarter of the season, are the primary topics on this episode...

Wednesday did not bring good news to the NFL when it came to COVID-19 testing. Patriots’ cornerback Stephon Gilmore received a positive test result on Tuesday, and so did an unidentified Raiders’ player. The added significance to that news: The Patriots just played the Chiefs and the Raiders are the next opponent. No positive test results for Chiefs players, at least none reported. Practice team q...

It wasn’t the most artistic of triumphs, but the Chiefs finished the job in defeating the New England Pariots 26-10 Monday night at Arrowhead Stadium. Their pass defense was excellent and made three interceptions, including Tyrann Mathieu’s return for a touchdown. Yes, the Patriots had to go with backup quarterbacks Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham to replace Cam Newton, who had tested positive for...

When the NFL called an audible on Sunday’s Chiefs-Patriots game, so did SportsBeat KC. Today would have been an A-Team discussion of the battle between the previous two Super Bowl champions. That will now happen on Tuesday, after the NFL rescheduled the game from Sunday to Monday because Patriots quarterback Cam Newton tested positive for COVID-19. So did Chiefs backup quarterback Jordan Ta’amu.....

The college football season has started at Missouri, got back on track at Kansas State and opened a quarterback derby at Kansas. We talk about those issues and more on SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast, with beat writers Souichi Terada, Kellis Robinett and Gary Bedore. The Tigers, coming off a 19-point loss to second-ranked Alabama, visit No. 21 Tennessee. Kansas State pulled off the...

Chiefs-Patriots matchups have produced some of the NFL’s most dramatic games over the past few years. Will that be the case again on Sunday? The Star’s A-Team of Sam McDowell, Herbie Teope, Vahe Gregorian and Sam Mellinger break down Sunday’s game between the previous two Super Bowl champions on SportsBeat Live, presented here as a SportsBeat KC podcast. For the only time this season, the Chiefs w...

The baseball playoffs have started ... without the Royals. That means it’s time to wrap up the season. Manager Mike Matheny said the young starting pitching and bullpen improvement over last year were season highlights and knows the team has to get better offensively. The team’s success in the second half was partly due to the ability to get runners on and move them around. Matheny wants to see mo...

The Kansas City Chiefs entered Monday’s game at the Baltimore Ravens as underdogs. After all, the Ravens had won 14 consecutive regular-season games and are led by reigning MVP Lamar Jackson. But the Chiefs were the better-prepared team. Patrick Mahomes had one of his best days in a Chiefs uniform, the defense bottled up Jackson and the KC prevailed 34-20. The Star’s A-team of Vahe Gregorian, Sam...

A funny thing happened to Oklahoma on its way to another blowout victory at home. Kansas State scored the game’s final 24 points and pulled off an upset of the third-ranked Sooners. How did the Wildcats do it? Beat writer Kellis Robinett, who covered the game in Norman, stops by The Star’s daily sports podcast, SportsBeat KC, to break down the first road victory by a K-State team over a top-three...

Where can the Chiefs and Ravens do damage to each other in their huge Monday Night Football clash? The Star’s A-Team of Herbie Teope, Sam McDowell, Sam Mellinger and Vahe Gregorian break it down on SportsBeat KC. The conversation on our daily sports podcast, which started its life as a SportsBeat Live video installment, provides Chiefs injury updates, looks at the budding Patrick Mahomes-Lamar Jac...

Countdown to the showdown in Baltimore continues as the Chiefs and Ravens continue working toward their Monday Night Football encounter. On SportsBeat KC, Patrick Mahomes talks about the game and looks back to last weekend’s victory against the Los Angeles Chargers. You’ll hear Mahomes and later Chiefs Coach Andy Reid give a shout out to Royals outfielder Alex Gordon, who announced his retirement...

College football’s biggest weekend approaches with conference games set for the Big 12 and SEC. On SportsBeat KC, beat writers Souichi Terada (Missouri), Kellis Robinett (Kansas State) and Gary Bedore (Kansas) break down their games, which begins with the prospect of playing the games in this pandemic season. The assignments are rugged with the Tigers playing host to No. 2 Alabama in Eli Drinkwitz...

Chiefs-Ravens on Monday Night Football on Week 3? Yes, please. The top two AFC contenders that matches the previous two NFL MVPs, Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, take center stage, and we’re here to take a first look in SportsBeat KC, The Star’s daily sports podcast, with columnists Sam Mellinger and Vahe Gregorian. The Chiefs have defeated the Ravens in each of the previous two season, both ga...