The first Friday of Week 1 will include the first-ever YouTube broadcast of an NFL game. And it will have a distinct YouTube flair.
Via Andrew Marchand of TheAthletic.com, the free stream will include a content creator named Deestroying. He’ll be one of the sideline reporters.
Deestroying’s legal name is Donald De La Haye. He kicked at Central Florida, and he has spent time in the CFL and the UFL. More importantly, his YouTube channel has 6.32 million subscribers.
Rich Eisen will handle play-by-play duties. Kurt Warner will be the analyst. Stacey Dales will serve as a sideline reporter, too.
The NFL’s primary broadcast partners have become very reluctant to loan talent to networks that televise a stray game.
The September 5 game will stream at no charge on YouTube.
The Chiefs did not get much out of defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah his first two seasons after they made him a first-round pick. They will get nothing out of him this season.
The team officially placed Anudike-Uzomah on injured reserve Monday, as coach Andy Reid expected earlier in the day.
Anudike-Uzomah strained his right hamstring.
The 2023 first-round pick has appeared in 34 games, with three starts, totaling eight tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
The Chiefs also announced they waived running back Elijah Young.
The team signed defensive end Owen Carney and linebacker Xander Mueller. Carney was with the Chiefs in training camp last year, and Mueller is an undrafted free agent out of Northwestern.
Chiefs defensive lineman Felix Anudike-Uzomah strained a hamstring and could land on injured reserve.
The 2023 first-round pick would see his season end if he’s placed on injured reserve before the cutdown date of Aug. 26, and Chiefs coach Andy Reid said that’s what “most likely” would happen.
“Yeah, that’s a tough thing,” Reid said, via Charles Goldman of AtoZ Sports. “He’s worked hard. We’ll see where it goes. I can’t tell you how long it’s going to be. Any time is disappointing for him because he’s worked so hard.”
Anudike-Uzomah has appeared in 34 games with three starts, totaling eight tackles for loss, three sacks, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Linebacker Jack Cochrane has a bone bruise on his knee, Reid said. Offensive tackle Ethan Driskell (appendix), safety Mike Edwards (hamstring), safety Nazeeh Johnson (shoulder), defensive tackle Omarr Norman-Lott (ankle), and wide receiver Jalen Royals (knee tendinitis) aren’t practicing Monday.
The Chiefs did see the return of wide receiver Hollywood Brown, who missed time with a foot/ankle injury. Reid would not commit to Brown playing in the final preseason game this week.
Kansas City’s regular players will be on the field for the club’s preseason finale against Chicago.
Head coach Andy Reid told reporters in his Monday press conference that the Chiefs’ starters will play on Friday night.
“They’ll start it off, for sure, and then we’ll see how it goes from there,” Reid said.
Last week, Reid had some starts — including the team’s offensive line — play with backup quarterback Gardner Minshew. But Reid also said he wanted to put some younger players in a competitive situation.
“I wanted to give the best look we could to these guys that are trying to make the team,” Reid said. “We’ve got some guys who are right on the border of making it. Give them a shot. And I wanted to see the quarterback work with the [No.] 1 offensive line.”
Quarterback Patrick Mahomes played just three snaps in the team’s preseason opener against Arizona, throwing a touchdown pass. He’s likely to play more than that on Friday night.
Wide receiver Hollywood Brown missed an extended period of time this summer with an injury to his ankle and foot, but the Chiefs have him back on the field.
Head coach Andy Reid said at a Monday press conference that Brown did some work in practice on Sunday and that the plan is for him to continue working on Monday. The Chiefs plan to play their starters in their final preseason game and Reid said that there’s been no decision about whether Brown could be among them.
“We’ll see how he progresses through this thing,” Reid said, via Nate Taylor of ESPN.com."It’s not a matter of want. He wants to do it. He’s taking it slow and we don’t want any setbacks.”
Brown was limited to five games last season, so it’s easy to understand why the Chiefs want to avoid further absences. Given the uncertainty about how long Rashee Rice will be available, it’s all the more important for Brown to be on the field this fall.
