Kansas City’s star cornerback spoke after Monday’s training camp practice.
While the Kansas City Chiefs’ training camp is unfolding at Missouri Western State University, preparations for the 2025 season long predate the team’s arrival in St. Joseph.
Cornerback Trent McDuffie and his teammates have been getting a message from defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo this offseason — one that is being better received than a year ago.
“In the first day of meetings,” McDuffie recalled after Monday’s practice, “Coach Spags put on the board, ‘Be bold, be courageous.’ He pretty much said he wants a room full of guys that are confident, that are fearless and that want to go out there and compete. I think that really set the tone — especially when you look at practice right now.
“Things aren’t perfect. People make mistakes. Everybody’s still trying to learn the defense, but we’re flying around and we’re having fun. We’re jelling together, and we’re communicating. I think the biggest thing right now is getting back into football and the communication and the trust. Right now, it’s a lot better than it was last year, and I think we continue to stack up on that.”
Echoing previous sentiments shared by linebacker Nick Bolton, McDuffie believes that even with some newcomers in the secondary, the defense’s communication is on point.
“This defensive backroom,” the fourth-year pro observed, “I feel like is [filled] lifelong learners — people who truly want to help each other. There’s not a lot of ego, so when it comes to guys competing in certain positions, it’s all love. The new guys we’ve brought in — the rookies we brought in — I feel like have learned this defense so much quicker than I feel like our class even did because they have so much help. They have so much communication — and whoever’s out there, for me personally, I trust them. I’m excited for what they can do.”
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One of those newcomers is rookie cornerback Nohl Williams, taken in the third round of April’s NFL Draft out of California. McDuffie is high on his new teammate — although the two-time All Pro has noted some areas for improvement.
“He’s getting good,” remarked McDuffie of the rookie. “You know, really good ball skills. He’s long, and he’s one of those guys that just competes. He’s a smart guy. He knows the defense really well, and we’ve got to clean up a few things and his technique. A few grabbings here and there, but once we iron those things out, I think he’s going to have a really good career.”
McDuffie’s highest-profile new teammate has yet to take the field in St. Joseph. Veteran corner Kristian Fulton, who joined the Chiefs as a free agent in March after spending 2024 with the Los Angeles Chargers, was placed on the active/physically-unable-to-perform (PUP) list at the start of camp to continue recovering from offseason knee surgery.
Even off the field, Fulton has contributed to the defensive backs room and is still preparing to take the field for the Chiefs.
“When he came into here — coming from a different team, a different scheme — we were able to kind of just pick each other’s brains, almost,“ said McDuffie. “Obviously, for me, it was teaching him a lot about the defense, what the coaches like, how to read eyes.
“Coming from him — it’s his fifth, sixth year in the league — he’s seen a few DBs in his own room and was kind of just speaking about how to just help each other technique-wise. I know he’s played a lot of off-man, so it’s been a few years since he’s really gone up there and pressed for 80-plus plays in the game.
“Just understanding that — when you come to this defense — you’ve got to be physical, you’ve got to set the edge, you’ve got to do the little things that maybe back at your old team you didn’t have to do. He’s been doing really good, recovering and doing his stuff there, but he’s always locked in. He’s always in meetings. He’s always taking notes, and that’s something that I see and like to have in my room.”
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Now in his fourth season, McDuffie is the secondary’s undisputed leader following the departure of veteran safety Justin Reid. While he embraces the leadership role, McDuffie’s leadership style may not be as visible as Reid’s.
“Not only on the field,” McDuffie explained, “but off the field, I think that’s where my leadership kind of takes a hold of things, because I feel like when you’re on the field, things are going so fast that a lot of guys don’t hear a lot of things.
“But when you come to the sideline — when your heart rate slows down and when you can kind of sit back and realize what you did — I feel like I can come in there and be that person that is out there with you — and that person that’s seen that before. The coaches do a really good job at coaching, but sometimes you just want that person who’s been out there and that’s been through it to come over and kind of just let you know that you’re doing the right things — or where you messed up.
“So, for me this year, just being someone that can be personable and approachable? I think that’s where my leadership is going to be. Someone that is just going to be consistently doing the right thing. Hopefully, people follow that.”