Kansas City, Mo. ? The news hit Willie Pile like a sudden splash of ice water on a winter day.

The 24-year-old rookie had gotten virtually no practice time all week. He had no inkling that he would even play at all.

But then Kansas City strong safety Greg Wesley hurt his hamstring during pregame warmups, and Pile was rushed onto the field just in time for kickoff against San Diego.

Not only that, he was assigned to cover tight end Antonio Gates, one of the NFL’s top young receivers.

As bad as it was, it could have been worse.

“They could have called me at home the night before and given me time to get nervous,” Pile said Wednesday. “But it was like, ‘They’re getting ready to snap the ball. Get in there and go play against a good team that’s on the rise.”‘

Neither Pile nor anyone else in the injury-wracked secondary can exactly say they shut Gates down. The Chargers’ second-year standout had seven catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns in San Diego’s 34-31 victory.

But all things considered, coaches have given Pile a passing grade.

“Overall, for not having been prepared to play like he would be the starter, I thought he did well,” coach Dick Vermeil said. “He has some talent. He has some instincts. He’s a good hitter. He has good range of movement.”

With Wesley still unable to practice, Pile will almost certainly get a second straight start Sunday at Oakland.

“I think I grew a lot,” he said. “I think it did a lot for my confidence as far being thrown out there. And it did a lot for my morale just knowing I can play in this league and execute.”

Drew Brees had a career-best day, passing for 378 yards, but the Chiefs were missing both their starting safeties. Jerome Woods also was out, replaced by backup Shaunard Harts.

Harts could start against the Raiders this weekend alongside Pile, who was signed as a free agent after starting 10 games last year in NFL Europe. And Sunday’s start made Pile more confident than ever of being a first-stringer someday.

“The talent and ability are all there,” he said. “Right now it’s from the neck up. From the neck up is what separates the good from the great players. If you want to be great, you have to do it from the neck up. Mentally I felt like I was into it.”

He had eight tackles against the Chargers and two pass defenses. In four games, he’s been in on 20 tackles, including one for a loss.

Gates, a phenomenon who didn’t even play college football, would have had even bigger numbers if an illegal-formation penalty hadn’t nullified a 51-yard catch-and-run.

“It doesn’t get any tougher than that,” Pile said. “I thought I competed well out there against him. He had a couple of catches against me, but overall I thought I executed the scheme that we run.”

Studying film of the game, Pile gained a much greater appreciation for the value of experience.

“I could have broken on some plays a little quicker had I seen, or had I expected or anticipated,” he said. “We talk a lot about anticipation, especially as a safety or as a defensive back.”

Despite the loss, Pile was so excited by the start that he, his mother and his girlfriend sat around Sunday night watching film of the game.

“It gave me a lot of confidence to know I can go out there and compete against one of the best offenses in the league,” he said.

QB Green still questionable for Oakland game

Quarterback Trent Green remains questionable for Sunday’s game at Oakland, Kansas City Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said Wednesday.

X-rays of the quarterback’s sore ribs showed no broken bones, but Green did not practice Wednesday.

“Hopefully tomorrow he’ll be able to do something,” Vermeil said. “I won’t know until tomorrow.”

Green is tied with Minnesota’s Daunte Culpepper for the NFL lead with five 300-yard passing games. He’s hit 247 of 372 passes for 3,052 yards with 15 TDs and 10 interceptions. His 59 consecutive starts are a Chiefs record for a quarterback.

Running back Priest Holmes, linebacker Monty Beisel and safety Greg Wesley are also out. Free safety Jerome Woods is listed as doubtful.