A Peek at Veach’s Sleight-of-Hand

Conversations between Laddie and me quite some time ago now detailed how Brett Veach would use sleight-of-hand to secret the potential draft targets in 2022. Laddie’s point was that Veach would pull players in that were to have an impact, fill open spots where weaknesses exist, and by doing so, keep other NFL teams from knowing what the Chiefs were going to do with the Draft.

Hey! It’s No News Thursday!

Where Things Stand With Covering Up Draft Targets

After allowing Hill to seek employment elsewhere, Brett Veach nearly immediately since JuJu Smith-Schuster(JS-S), Marquez Valdes-Scantling(MV-S) and brought to the Kingdom Corey Coleman. That is three Wideouts signed on immediately. We won’t know what Coleman is capable of getting to the table until camp. Both Marquez and JuJu bring considerable talent to the WR group. Both are serious threats and could be considered #1-type WRs for their previous teams. Neither is a replacement for Tyreek Hill. Their talents complement each other, and I look forward to Patrick Mahomes finding them in the aerial attack.

Both are of greater physical stature than other WRs the Chiefs have fielded over the past several seasons. I like that about both, and it fits with Nate Taylor’s view of the shift in philosophy for aerial targets for Mahomes. Marquez brings height and strength to the equation at 6’5″. JuJu is 6’1″ and also brings physical prowess.

On Wednesday, I included remarks by Andy Reid and by author Nate Taylor of the Athletic regarding a shift to a physical, aggressive WR Corps that had speed as well. I do think that is part and parcel of the aim of Brett Veach and Andy Reid, who have already turned the page from the Ty Hill presence. The Chiefs will bring a WR who fits the new mold. I see five ways to go to add another aerial weapon.

1. Continue by drafting a WR who has the physical presence such as our two new WRs possess(Nate Taylors’s Hybrid Construct).
2. Draft a WR who is a complete deep threat(I think we are talking a ton of draft capital to move up in the top 10 to insure this occurs.
3. Depend upon Mecole Hardman for the Occassional Over the top Deep Ball(Mecole? It’s the last chance).
4. With a later round selection, add a speedy, shifty WR who approaches the twitchyness and speed of Hill(Austin, see below).
5. Sign a Free Agent WR (Veach called around. Such a signing now appears unlikely at this time).

Wide Receivers

I have written twice about trading up for a WR. My target of choice is Jameson Williams. Yes, he had an injury. Yes, drafting him has a risk due to the injury, and yes, I still think he is a high round-one quality pick that would require a trade-up to have a shot at drafting him. I suppose at this point. I should mention that drafting a player in round one is always a risk. Such a player might not ever live up to what was expected when selected. To draft a round one player is a significant investment. Late-round picks add a financial commitment over 4 or 5 years to the tune of $25m each. I believe it plausible that Williams drops into the bottom third of the first round. It might be that the Chiefs use a Round 1 pick and 3rd to move up to select him. It’s also possible that as the Draft unfolds, Williams will still be available at pick #29.

If Williams is the target, then Brett Veach will plan to take action so that Jameson becomes a Chief.

I have written about my WR target: George Pickens, the Georgia WR I covet. I do not believe that Pickens will move up the draft order to a round-one qualifying rating. I do think Pickens will be selected early in round two. This means that it is improbable that he would be available at pick #18. Depending on how round one unfolds, I see with my crystal ball that Veach will trade back so that he can select Pickens earlier than Pick #18, and this would potentially give Brett Veach another round 3 or 4 draft pick. Veach might also use later picks to trade up in the draft order to accomplish the same thing.

On Wednesday, one of our readers commented about the speedy but small WR from Memphis, Calvin Austin III. One of our ArrowheadOne frequent contributors promoted this idea, “Bert.” That addition to the WR room and the players noted above could be part of the plan. In the mocks I have done, I have selected Austin because of his speed. Austin would add a corollary threat to the big and fast meme that Nate Taylor recently presented at the “The Athletic.” Still, I am looking for size, length, and physicality in the first WR selection of the Draft. Austin would fit the bill as an added quality. I have never drafted him before the last pick of the 3rd round. If I were going to select a WR earlier in the Draft with this profile fit, it would be someone like Skyy Moore. Moore has the desirable metrics, but I do not favor him over other players who fit Nate Taylor’s “hybrid” WR solution. On the roster are three players who might fit the rotation: Cornell Powell, Duarice Fountain, and Josh Gordon.

Defensive Tackle

Chris Jones is the premier pass-rush specialist of the IDL. Derrick Nnadi provides early-down run-defense support. He is not a threat when rushing the passer. The Chiefs signed Free Agent DT of the Colts, Taylor Stallworth. Taylor is not yet the threat that he might be. The signing was inexpensive. Taylor has a better ceiling by far than Nnadi or other rotational DTs.

By signing Taylor, Veach has confused the picture other teams might see about the Draft (Laddie’s sleight-of-hand). I like the Taylor addition. I think it holds promise for the pass rush as well. In 2021 Laddie promoted the idea of drafting such a DT. It didn’t happen. Veach did sign DT Jarran Reed–This free agent signing didn’t yield the expected results. Reed has now departed the roster after one season. As it stands now, Veach can pick and choose his DT without telegraphing anything to other GMs.

Linebacker

In the 2nd wave of Free Agency, Brett Veach signed LB Jermaine Carter, Jr. I like the addition of Carter for the LB group. Gay, Bolton, and Carter give the Chiefs significant ability to excel in pursuit side-line-to-side-line, and Carter plays pass defense well.

With both Ben Niemann and Dorian O’Daniel departing, that signing was important and hid any potential draft selection from public view. I indeed hope the Chiefs draft a LB in this year’s Draft.

Running Back

The Chiefs did not re-sign Darrel Williams resulting in a subtraction from the RB room right out of the gate. However, the Chiefs did sign free agent RB Ronald Jones. Jones is a powerful RB who is very good with one cut and runs well between the tackles. Paired with Clyde Edwards-Helaire, the Chiefs have a powerful duo for the RB cadre. They then tendered Derrick Gore. One surprise to me about this off-season is they did not offer a contract to Jarrick McKinnon. I thought he added juice when inserted in the rotation in 2021. Still, I believe any ability for another team to predict what the Chiefs might do in the Draft. Other GMs will be unable to predict the direction the Chiefs will take in the Draft.

Defensive End – So far, There Has Been No Action

Signing a DE to play opposite Frank Clark seems necessary to me. By doing so, the Chiefs would cover the Chief’s direction in the Draft for DEs. This position is what is driving me nuts.

I have proposed that Veach sign Melvin Ingram. Daniel Harms of RGR Analytics has emphatically stated the same thing. He said Veach should make that happen, and he spoke dramatically.

Such a signing has not happened. There are two players about whom we know little: DEs Joshua Kaindoh and Malik Herring. I don’t think anyone knows how important they will be in the DE mix this offseason. In addition, Mike Danna is on the roster. He is a rotational player, not a starter. Drafting a Defensive End in round One is not a luxury. It is a necessity.

I thought this was a must-cover position, but that has not been the case.

Are We There Yet? – Not Yet!

Other things need to be covered, but it appears that mostly, we are all waiting for the Draft to begin on April 28th. Waiting is difficult for us all.

David Bell – ArrowheadOne