Chiefs: Building and Strengthening Positions Room By Room, Part III – in Parts I & II, I covered the Kansas City Chiefs Running backs, Quarterbacks, Defensive Line, Wide Receivers and Safeties. Today, we will take a peak at Tight Ends, the Offensive Line and the dig in for a hard look at the Chiefs two greatest exposures: Cornerbacks and Linebackers.
I am adding the draft picks as we go through but I am not going to add the UDFAs as that was covered by Laddie Morse on Sunday. There were 19 players added.
The Tight End Room ► Strong
The Chiefs being Strong in this room and the obvious reason is future HoF TE Travis Kelce. I think his career will set distinctive records all the way through but he was drafted in the 3rd round of 2013 and this is his 8th season as a pro. I do believe that in the next go-round with salaries, Brett Veach needs to give him a long term contract to keep him in KC and I am certain that this is what Kelce wants as well. When Demetrius Harris was drafted, I applauded the pick. I thought, knowing a bit about him — having myself lived in Kenosha and also following basketball — that Harris would add that second offensive threat to the TE Group. He started out great guns making great catches in camp and preseason and then a problem surfaced – the dropsyitis disease. Harris is gone. We tried various players and last year added Blake Bell and Deon Yelder. Bell is gone but Yelder remains and shows promise as a #2 TE. With the number of targets that Pat Mahomes has in his repertory, Yelder is never going to amass enough catches and yards to get much beyond 500 yards, if that. Behind Yelder is Nick Keizer- 6-4, 250 out of Grand Valley St., a UDFA for KC in 2019, released, signed to the Ravens PS and picked by KC for 2020.
Why do I rate this group as Strong? It’s the consequence of the Chiefs Wideouts and RB’s in the aerial game as well as Travis Kelce getting enough targets to be a total offensive threat. It leaves only a bit of space for other Tight Ends to receive a pass. However, making the group even stronger was the addition by Brett Veach of Free Agent Tight End Ricky Seals-Jones, who has time in the NFL — 4 seasons — and is still only 25. Seals-Jones is 6-5, 245 with speed and good hands and is in his 5th NFL Year. He will never be the feature TE that Kelce but a solid #2 TE is where he fits. He has 14 Catches and 4 TD’s in 2019 with the Browns. I see Ricky taking over the #2 TE role at the present.
The Offensive Line ► Above Average
The OL needs continued focus. 2019 was an injury plagued season. I am calling the perceived weakness an error in judgement even before the draft. Having added a draft pick who looks to be a future OT starter in Lucas Niang of TCU, he brings promise as a third round pick. I see him as a starter at OT but who will likely take on the SW/T role and he could move inside as well.
Bookend OT’s are at the very least, Pro Bowl Level: Eric Fisher LOT and Mitchell Schwartz ROT are the key to protecting the back and front side view of Mahomes.
ROG, Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has been a solid, above average guard in his career. 2018 saw him with a broken leg and he suffered with this in coming back as soon as he did. Then during the season he had a high ankle sprain. Substituting for him was aVeach acquisition from the Texans, Martinas Rankin. Rankin played well enough to be a starter in last year and will compete for a role in 2020. He was knocked out of the remainder of 2019 with an injury.
LOG, Andrew Wylie, was acquired in a trade and demonstrated why he was a starter in 2018 and won the starting job in 2019. He also was injured in 2019.
Center, Austin Reiter, returns as a starter in the middle and was also acquired in a trade. I think that both Wylie and Reiter, who were in their first year as starters, were affected by the injuries with Wylie suffering the ankle injury. Stefan Wisniewski was brought aboard but he is gone in 2020 and not renewed. A similar vet was signed this spring: Mike Remmers, ostensibly to be an experienced vet for the OL but, who likely will be shooting for a starting role.
OL Depth comes from players on the roster from 2019: Ryan Hunter (OG), Greg Senat (OT) and others who have joined the roster. I think highly of a UDFA added from Mizzou, Yasir Durant. Camp and preseason will be needed to fold in the ability of each of the additions to the roster.
I don’t think the group is… weak nor is it a strength… but with so many injuries to starters, the group had trouble with regaining continuity that was present in pre-season and so, this OL room has suddenly become a potentially strong group and 2020 will tell us why.
Linebackers ► A Needy Room
LB was below average and greatly improved with a draft pick but still NFL average. The Chiefs LB corp cannot be construed as being strong but now it is not a weak room either. Maybe it will gel to something that is better with just the one draft pick. Linebackers have been about average or just below since 2016. I haven’t felt it was a group befitting of a championship team. Now I have hope.
Reggie Ragland has departed leaving an exposure and personnel that were known factors, who have not made my heart rate moderate from the forlorn… but the exposure was recently covered.
Anthony Hitchens remains, Damien Wilson who played well in 2019 begins his 7th campaign, and 3 year pro Ben Niemann provides the 3rd player to the group. So, we also know that this current threesome isn’t a great worry… at best. However, if this group doesn’t warm the cockles there is ample reason to be concerned. Hitchens remains enigmatic and he has 2 years remaining on an expensive contract. Wilson is good enough for a mix as is Niemann but, a true 3 down LB is not to be found on that room.
It may well be that the Chiefs defense in the 3-4 was not the right fit for either Hitchens or Ragland who played about as well as a far less costly LB very early on in the person of Josh Mauga who preceded them. That doesn’t say much as for how much Hitchens and Ragland cost. Then, the Chiefs drafted Dorian O’Daniel, a speedy LB who saw just 5 snaps in 2019. It difficult for me to see a continued career in KC except as an effective member of S/T’s.
There is good news on the horizon though. From this point the group is very weak. Two players were added for depth and hopeful they work out. Omari Cobb was added as a UDFA was just added from Marshall (6-4, 225) and also Veach added UDFA Brian Wright (6-3, 238 from Cincy). Of course we won’t know much about depth players until preseason or later. Darius Harris, returns for year two (6-2, 230 out of Middle Tn St) as does Emmanuel Smith (6-2, 240 of Vandy) also with 1 NFL year.
So why do I see things looking up? The big home improvement move for the Linebacking crew was the Chiefs 2nd round pick: LB Willie Gay, Jr. (6-1, 243 – Ms. St). Enough hype and hyperbole was written about Gay since Friday but, I will say that he is a starting 3-Down LB in 2020 who would have been a round one selection had the red flags not roused concern from all 32 teams. His value dropped enough that he would have been a 3rd round pick had not Veach taken him with the last pick of round 2.
This was Ace #2 of the 2020 draft for Brett Veach with Ace #1 being the selection of Clyde Edwards-Helaire in round 1.
Cornerbacks ► A Huge Worry
CB is a weakness even after the draft. With only 5 picks, it was going to be difficult to address all five picks to respective needs and weaknesses. This draft again reveals the unavailability at the Chiefs draft points of a talent that was rated high enough on the Chiefs draft board to warrant selection. Brett Veach made a trade to get Charvarius Ward from Dallas, sending Parker Ehinger south to bring Ward North.
As far as I was concerned, this was an “Ace” move by Veach and it proved out in the playoff game against the Patriots which appeared to position the Chiefs as the next contender from the AFC in Super Bowl 53. It wasn’t to be due to Dee Ford lining up in the neutral Zone. Veach signed two players who were great additions for 2019 but Kendall Fuller returned the Redskins.
At that point, Ward along with late 2019 draft pick and newcomer Rashad Fenton appeared to be basic CB Group. In 2019, Fenton turned in a great effort and hopefully he will salt away his upcoming season and prove out with another good performance and improve on what he accomplished in 2019.
Then Brett Veach re-signed Bashaud Breeland who was a Free Agent and most thought he was all but gone. An experienced hand was signed from the Jets, Antonio Hamilton, and that was a solid move to get stronger depth. When that happened, I breathed a big sigh of relief!
The room still needs work. So, the outlook for depth brings two players back from 2019: Alex Brown and Chris Lammons.
The Chiefs newcomers are going to be where hope and a prayer come aboard: Veach drafted L’Jarius Sneed, La. Tech, and “BoPete” Keyes-Tulane. A seventh round pick and a top UDFA are in this mix. Veach gave up a 2021 choice in one case and had eyes on both players. Also signed as a UDFA’s were Michigan’s Lavert Hill as was Hakeem Bailey, WVU and Javaris Davis out of Auburn.
No matter how I look at it, it is a WIP and won’t prove out even in camp. Too much remains unproven for me to state that I am positive about the Cornerback room. We go from here to rookie camp to camp to preseason. Hopefully from this will emerge another player who goes far beyond promise to fulfillment that was only a vision this past week.
Last thoughts
I have concerns for the future in retaining players and the continued effort to strengthen and maintain each player group but my eyes are going to follow the cornerbacks! I still view both the CB and LB room as works in progress and we still don’t know who will be “Solid” Depth for either group. When it comes down to cut time, players will become free agents and Veach can work from those men to add to what we know today. That part is a wait and see deal, as are the drafted rookies and UDFAs.
Go Chiefs! Let loose the dogs and lets get after it!
David Bell – ArrowheadOne
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