As the Kansas City Chiefs prepare to open the 2025 season against the Los Angeles Chargers in São Paulo, Brazil on Friday night, special teams coordinator Dave Toub knows it will be a unique challenge.
“First of all, the flight, that’s something we got to deal with — well, both teams do,” Toub told reporters this week. “It’s going to be a long flight. Then the other thing: what’s the field going to look like? Those are all things that you really can’t control.”
Despite these uncertainties, the organization
is amped up for the trip.
“The team is excited about going,” said Toub. “I feel it with the players.”
But Toub isn’t sure he can share in it.
“I’m 63 now,” he noted, “so I’m not really excited [about] going 11 hours on a plane. But it is what it is.”
Both the Chiefs and Chargers will endure that trip before suiting up at Arena Corinthians, where field conditions became a major talking point in last year’s inaugural Brazil game between the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles. The slippery surface caused problems for both teams, even forcing players to change cleats midway through the game.
While the league has assured both teams that conditions will be better, Toub is reserving judgment.
“[We’ll] take that for what it’s worth,” he said, “and we’ll see.”
Whatever they are, the team will have to deal with field conditions on the fly, since it will not have the opportunity to practice on the field. But that’s true for just about any road game, so Toub believes what they can learn in pre-game warmups will be enough.
“It’s going to be the same, I think, for both teams,” he reminded his listeners, “so there’s no advantage either way. It is what it is.”
Nor is he worried about São Paulo’s relatively high altitude. Playing annually in Denver is a much tougher test than what they’ll face in Brazil.
“What is it, 2,900 ft?” asked Toub. “We haven’t talked about it — not one bit, really. Now, when you’re playing in Denver? It’s a little bit different.”
While travel and turf questions hang over the opener, Toub’s attention remains on the Chargers’ special teams unit, which features an electric young returner: Darius Davis.
“[He’s] very good,” warned Toub. “[He’s] excellent. Dynamic. He’s not a real big guy — but he’s quick, fast and shifty. You have to be sound covering him. You can’t overcommit one way or the other, or he’ll cut it back on you. So we’ve got our hands full with him for sure.”
The rest of the Chargers’ specialists only add to the challenge. Punter J.K. Scott and kicker Cameron Dicker remain reliable weapons — and the team recently signed former Eagles long snapper Rick Lovato after a season-ending injury to its 13-year veteran Josh Harris. Toub expects the transition to be seamless.
“The punter and the kicker — ‘Dicker the kicker’ — they’re both excellent,” said Toub. “We played against [Lovato]. He was at the Eagles last year, so we know him. He’s an experienced guy, so they won’t miss a beat. They’re solid across the board.”
