Beyond Chiefs ILB Pair:
WILL #2 Ukeme Eligwe
· by David Bell
In the previous two articles, Reggie Ragland and Anthony Hutchens were the focus. They will be the starting pair of ILB’s in the 2018 season. However, the need is deeper than just those two. At least four more ILB’s are needed just for depth — one could be a safety such as was used by Defensive Coordinator Bob Sutton in order to man “Dime” packages the past two seasons. Here, Sutton used Daniel Sorensen but, intermixed other players.
Players To Consider
In John Dorsey’s last draft, he chose ILB Ukeme Eligwe who was not planned as a starter, but a player to develop for the near future. Dorsey did something similar at OLB as well. In that case, he drafted Tanoh Kpassagnon and his potential in his second season will be examined in future coverage for the 3-4 edge players of the Chiefs. Another Dorsey signing is Terrance Smith who was injured in 2017 and did not appear on anything but the IR for the complete season. He had shown promise but was stymied by injury.
For 2018, The Chiefs drafted Dorian O’Daniel who looks the part to be a good fit for the Chiefs. He adds the dimension of speed to the ILB corp, something that was lost when the Chiefs traded away DJ Alexander to the Seahawks in return for Kevin Pierre-Louis. Alexander’s frame was outside the framework of GM Brett Veach’s view of how he might fit. The return was one year of output from KPL who was released to Free Agency. Last season, the Seahawks got what they needed which was speed for the special teams — something that Alexander brought to the Chiefs and which earned him a S/T Pro Bowl selection.
The Chiefs need at the Inside position was going to suffer as witnessed in 2017. Derrick Johnson did not return to form and was released by our GM, hence the import of Veach signing Anthony Hitchens. Late, in addition as a UDFA, the Chiefs brought in Iowa ILB Ben Niemann. I personally like Niemann’s chance at making at least the PS. I don’t wish to exclude players but these 4 players are most likely to have a shot at the roster.
Ukeme Eligwe’s Fit as the #2 WILL
If WILL # 1 is Anthony Hitchens, then Ukeme Eligwe is very likely WILL #2. Without seeing the players in pads we can only go by what we have seen the past season. Eligwe and O’Daniel will certainly play the role. Smith will have another shot at making the lineup and that might mean that another inside player is on the roster. Ukeme Eligwe certainly fits the role of today’s Weak Inside Linebacker. He is 6-foot-2 – 240 lbs. arriving at FSU as a highly touted prospect. His behavioral dismissal (drug tests failed) ended that promise. He was injured the next season and finished his collegiate career at Georgia Southern. A highlight video of his play can be found below:
He does have strength but is more of a direct, straight ahead player. His problem has been: reading plays and flowing to the ball. I am not sure that is valid but look at the film yourself.
Eligwe does fend off or avoid blockers in order to get the angle on the ball carrier and make plays. Using the exposure here coming to the Pro’s, we could take Lance Zierlein’s input as Eligwe is “sometimes late on diagnosing a play.” Coming out of GA. Southern indicates that this read on the weakness may be over-played. At GSU he recorded 104 tackles, 11 of those behind the LoS while earning All Conference-HM. He was then drafted by Dorsey on the developmental forecast.
I went to review some of Eligwe’s film after the draft and would have to point out that this may be a miss-read for the intended position as he was drafted for the inside at KC. He was selected in round five, pick 40, by Dorsey. To counter Zierlein’s rating of a 6-7 round player, Chief’s area scout, Ryne Nutt, noted that he played OLB in college but was drafted for the inside, potentially for the weak-side. When viewed this way but, not seeing film of him playing the position makes it difficult to envision the fit. However, that’s how Dorsey saw him, which now would make him the #2 WILL behind Hitchens… most likely.
Nutt observed about Eligwe’s play that, “he has speed, drops effectively into zone coverage and… the kid can run” when discussing pass coverage, even sticking with receivers in the slot running a seam route such as a big WR or TE. With a 40 time under 4.6, Eligwe should be effective in zone defense. In his first season with the Chiefs, Eligwe appeared in 14 games, recorded an interception (in the Titan’s game where he tipped the pass and gathered it in for an INT). For a view of the tip and interception:
#Chiefs WILL – LB Ukeme Eligwe, has speed and athleticism which could allow him to become a transformational linebacker in the Chiefs defensive system. Here you can see his skill level.#ArrowheadOne #ChiefsKingdom pic.twitter.com/ONGltl7BtC
— Ladner Morse (@Laddiemorse) June 24, 2018
Eligwe was heavily used by Dave Toub on special teams. One thing I do know is that Toub is very positive about Eligwe as an Inside Linebacker. He stated in an interview that he did not expect to keep him long as he was a good player and thought that Eligwe would be a dedicated defensive player in 2018. There is no video of his play at inside linebacker. You can watch game film where he is substituted in or watch special teams video for glimpses. As I wrote about, we are just going to have to wait for the players to don the pads.
Reports about Eligwe conclude that he is physical enough to play inside and has great speed. In the Chiefs organization Toub and Nutt both are high on his ability to be a regular player in the NFL at ILB.
David Bell – NSLU
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