David Bell and Laddie Morse
Previously on this Channel, David took a “First Look” at the offseason outlook for GM Brett Veach and the Chiefs staff. He delved into the upcoming draft, but without some tasks being accomplished, that’s a long-term process that will culminate in the draft itself.
Before the draft, we will all will get a ton of information about the players from the Combine and Pro Days. Prior to that, will be the opening of the Free Agency Period. There may be a couple of moves and Free Agent acquisitions, and one we both lend some credence to is acquiring a #2 WR to add to the weapons to deploy against defenses. We’re am not stating that this will occur. What we are saying is, that Veach will surely be looking to bolster the aerial threats if possible. In our view, it is tough to spend a lot of money on a player to add to the offense when a predominant number of targets are going to Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce. Even so, there are in-house possibilities. Both Byron Pringle and Mecole Hardman stepped it up as the season progressed, unfortunately it wasn’t enough as K.C. lost the AFCCG.
Without looking specifically at Replacement Players for Chiefs players who are Free Agents and likely to depart, let us dig a bit deeper and see who we are sure to retain, or, conversely, release to other teams and environs as those players might decide.
The Offensive Line is Not Broken – David
First let’s take a peek at Orlando Brown, Jr., the Chiefs new Left Offensive Tackle. I am going to put this to rest first. Brown is not going anywhere and will be starting on the left side for years to come. Brown, Jr. will have a new contract to open the 2022 Season. There is no way in hell Brett Veach detaches Brown from the success of replacing all the faces on the offensive line in 2021. It will not happen. I suppose there can be a question about an extended contract or a tag. It behooves Veach to come up with a 4-5 year deal and he does have a bargaining chip in that Brown never exceeded the 80.0 Pff Grade in 2021.
I wish to point out a couple of things though. Brown came to the Chiefs to be the LOT, but was transitioning from the right side. It was his first season with the Chiefs who have a complicated blocking scheme, and playbook. Further, he is blocking for a quarterback who is unlike any other, even than Jackson who he was blocking for in Baltimore. During the 2021 season, Brown struggled earlier on, but as the season progressed, he made adjustments, and his performance improved game by game. Overall Brown’s PFF Grade ended up at 75.5 across 19 games. My view is that Brown will improve to another level in 2022. He is an intelligent player with an NFL Pedigree. I think we can count on it.
Recall when Eric Fisher joined the Chiefs, how tough it was to get the same things down that Brown was faced with. Fisher reaped great criticism being a round 1 pick and struggling. it took him about 3 years to get it down, all the while getting a heap of criticism. Then last year, it was woe is us because he was injured, and an even greater hue and cry when he was released by Veach. The Chiefs are fortunate to have the players on the offensive front that we have – Brown will return. Extension or a tag, he is our LOT — and I support that.
Keep in mind that Lucas Niang ROT may not be ready to roll opening day. Stability across the front 5 is crucial. That probably is another factor buttressing my view. At the same time, they must deal with Lucas Niang’s return from the IR. He was injured and had surgery in early January and may not be available for the season opener but he will be earmarked to be on the Active Squad ASAP. When he arrives, the original Five Starters can have a reunion. At the same time, I think this assures me that Andrew Wylie will be on the active roster either way. That is insurance for Niang’s recovery and rehab and a needed Swing player anyway. This means as well that Brown won’t move and that Andrew Wylie performed well when he substituted for Niang. Wylie is economical, knows the playbook, the system, and his fellow linemen. He will return as well.
Thank heavens for Veach signing Brown, Thuney, and Blythe and also drafting Creed and Trey. It is very possible that Austin Blythe returns as the #2 Center, too. He has similar versatility to Joe Thuney. He can play all three IOL positions and would be a very economical retention for the Offensive Line. If you see this picture as I do, the Chiefs offensive line has 7 spots reserved for the upcoming season. None of this should preclude the return of Kyle Long or even Mitch Schwartz to the OL Group!
The Offensive Line – Laddie
Orlando Brown is a given at this point. If Brett Veach can’t re-sign him right off the bat, then he will slap the Franchise tag on him. Veach said in his Feb 1 press Conference:
“I thought Orlando did a great job, he’s another unique character…. When you talk about a culture, and you talk about a guy that does everything the right way, Orlando Brown’s in that category. The guy never misses practice, um, he’s as dependable as there is. You know, that Cincinnati game in the regular season, it killed him that he couldn’t play… and he actually came back on the field and wanted to play with a pulled calf muscle. So, I think he’s done a great job at Left Tackle… and we expect him to be our Left Tackle moving forward.”
That’s fairly definitive considering it was Brett Veach who said it.
As far as I’m concerned, Brown has not been perfect or anywhere near perfect in the 2021 season. I was surprised that he made the Pro Bowl and I pointed out to David Bell that I thought he was given the Pro Bowl designation based upon his past performance with the Ravens to which David replied: “I think that was also based upon his father’s reputation.” I can’t disagree with any of that. However, does that mean I don’t want Brown Jr. to be the Chiefs Left Tackle moving forward? Not in the least.
Brown is a player in progress and didn’t even play LT a whole season for the Ravens. Then, he was thrown into Mr. Toad’s — err, Andy Reid’s– Wild Ride of an offense. The fact that he was not only getting used to a new and varied offense, plus having to learn to play next to a completely revamped OL… he did an very good job, all things considered.
Also, Andrew Wylie should be brought back to stabilize the offensive line. If Lucas Niang is not ready to go on day one, Wylie could be that guy. Yes, Mithcell Schwartz is a possibility, and so is Kyle Long, but I think Lucas Niang is the long term solution at RT, so the question is, who will be the substitute RT until he’s ready. I think that’s Wylie.
WR 3, 4, 5 – David
I don’t know that 3, 4, 5 have anything to do with Priority (see Hardman below for the #3 WR). Both Mecole Hardman, Byron Pringle, and Demarcus Robinson bring added value. All three players are big special teams contributors. I was really impress by the late contributions as receivers by both Hardman and Pringle. Unfortunately, though I think the Chiefs will retain Hardman, Byron Pringle will command a lot of attention as a Free Agent and so too will Demarcus Robinson. I think Brett Veach, with input from his staff along with Reid and the coaching staff, must make a decision whether or not to sign a “3rd” complete weapon as the #2 WR. That’s where it stands now. That’s where it stood last fall. Veach sought to sign at least two major WR’s last fall. Neither signing came to fruition. I’d have to guess that the same thought exists right here, right now. That consideration would be drawn on the board opposite the need to work on the defense. A new WR would have to be fast, quick, and savvy. Personally, I think the right player in the draft is the proper course. Always, the construct that I operate from is to build from within. I know the reader will recall what Sammy Watkins brought to the table. That was important to the Super Bowl Run 2019, but, Sammy had an availability problem due to his calf muscles and he departed for that same reason. A WR could be obtained depending on GM moves to gain Cap space. This also makes a draft pick a consideration.
Stabilizing Weapons – Laddie
While the question of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th WRs is important, Veach should have no problem finding guys who want to work with Patrick Mahomes. The larger question is: who will be weapons that are primary for Mahomes? While WRs 3, 4, and 5 can be a great supporting cast, so can Jerick McKinnon. In fact, I think McKinnon proved later in the season that he could be a breakout performer at RB or…. With his great hands he could possibly transform into a Tyreek Hill-lite. After Jerick McKinnon had 2 rushing attempts for 18 yards, and 13 receptions for 107 yards in the regular season, in the 2021 his Postseason numbers looked like this;
- vs Steelers – 12/61 rushes and 6/81 receptions
- vs Bills – 10/24 rushes and 5/54 receptions
- vs Bengals – 12/65 rushes and 3/30 receptions
That’s 315 total yards in three big games. Let’s not forget that Hill was drafted as a KR/RB out of West Alabama before Reid converted him to almost exclusively to the WR position. Hill had 276 yards rushing his rookie year in K.C., so it’s not unreasonable to think McKinnon — as a RB — could be used more as a WR moving forward.
The other player I’d like to see Veach bring back is TE Blake Bell. Bell knows Andy Reid’s system, enough to play in it (in 2019), then go away to the Cowboys (in 2020) then return to K.C. (in 2021). He may have only had 9 catches for 87 yards in 2021, but some of his catches were timely and important. He also gives Noah Gray a chance to develop while not having he pressure to be the #2 TE in the system immediately. Yes, I think Noah Gray can be a very good TE, but I still think it will take some time.
WR#2 From Within? It’s Possible! -David
Let’s just lay it all out on the table: Hardman is probably a clear choice for WR#3. Pringle strutted some stuff in 2021 but not enough to earn him more targets. Robinson is next below him, in my mind. Both offer special teams big contributions. Neither are necessary for the future.
At this point, I can say that I was disappointed in both Cornell Powell and Josh Gordon last year. I think Gordon has the opening to gain a lot from training camp and pre-season games. He has had proven production at the 1,000 per level. Getting both on the same page with Patrick Mahomes, knowledgeable about Reid’s playbook from the start of things to opening day may change our view of both players. Or, it could be that Veach and the Scouting crew have eyeballed that #2 WR of the future and hope to acquire him in the draft — without disrupting the rebuild-on-the-fly for the offense. Wait and see.
WR#2 – Laddie
Because Brett Veach signed Sammy Watkins… and… because Brett Veach tried to sign JuJu Smith-Schuster last offseason, I think he will try to do the same this year. David Bell made a great point to me in a phone conversation the other day when he said,
“Andy Reid is more likely to sign a good #2 WR
than draft one, because it takes too long to
get a drafted WR up to speed in his offense.”
I couldn’t agree more, and that puts a bow on it.
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Next Up: Chiefs Offseason for the Defense: A Major Undertaking
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David Bell — ArrowheadOne
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