Within the first four weeks of the 2026 season, the Kansas City Chiefs
turned their unsuccessful 2025 season around with a 4-0 record. And their Week 4 game against the Las Vegas Raiders
was nothing short of a thriller. In the fourth quarter of the game, after Kenneth Walker III scored a rushing touchdown to give his team a four-point lead, Jeffrey Bassa ensured that the Chiefs got the ball back on the very next play.
Bassa punched the ball out of the returner's hands, and Jack Cochrane recovered the fumble. It was certainly a decisive play that led the Chiefs to a 30-27 victory. But it's worth noting that Travis Kelce doesn't really like practicing punch defense. Yet, watching Bassa turn the game around in favor of Kansas City brought about a change in his perspective.
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"El Jefe. My guy, Jeff Bassa. The punch-out man," the tight end exclaimed when his brother pulled up a video of the Week 4 game on the New Heights Podcast
. "I was being an old angry vet during training camp. When you're at training camp, it's like, the focus is for the defense is that everybody rallies to the ball and punches the ball (as an offensive player, you have to make sure you hold onto the ball).
"And even after the whistle is blown and the play is so-called dead, players, defensive players are still running up to you trying to punch the ball out. It's very annoying, especially when you're in your third day of pads or six days of pads in seven days, or whatever. And you're just getting haymakered by linebackers and DBs down the field as you're trying to finish the play."
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After having enough of the punches, Travis claimed that one fine day, he demanded to see at least two of those punches in the regular season. But watching Bassa made him take those words back.
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"And sure enough, to see it in one of the biggest moments of the season," Travis said. "Bassa coming through with a f—ing perfect punch, man. It was great."
The Chiefs' tight end further clarified that he wouldn't complain about the rest of the practice sessions. He claimed that Bassa's play was "absolutely electric." And if the defensive linemen can keep showcasing that strength on the gridiron, they should keep doing it.
Well, with the linebacker's fumble recovery, Walker got another chance to go for a touchdown with a 22-yard run. And an extra point from Harrison Butker pushed the Chiefs to a 30-19 lead. Even though Kirk Cousins managed to score a touchdown and found success in the ensuing two-point conversion, the Raiders couldn't surpass the Chiefs.
For Bassa, it was coach Dan Lanning's defense (during his time with the Oregon) that prepared him for Steve Spagnuolo's schemes in the offseason.
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"That's a defense that not a lot of people are running nowadays," Bassa told the Big Ten Network back in May 2026. "And I feel like that defense really prepared me, especially for me going from here to the Chiefs, you know, with Coach Spags and the Chiefs running a complex defense. I feel like I was really prepared when it came to the mental aspect of the game."
Jeffrey Bassa's well-timed punch-out changed Kelce's perspective on practice. But only time can tell if he can keep doing it for the rest of the season.
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