David Bell
By now, if you have followed ArrowheadOne, you know that I have great admiration for the Kansas City Chiefs GM, Brett Veach. But now, getting to the AFC Conference Championship Game has demonstrated that Veach’s draft picks and player acquisitions ensured the Chiefs would win vs. the Bills, which is exactly what happened.
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Brett “the Mavrick GM” at a Chiefs Press Conference!
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Already this week we have heard from various commentators that Josh Allen is the superior QB in the AFC, ignoring Patrick Mahomes. That is, at the very least, laughable. This statement is not meant to be disrespectful to Josh Allen. I admire Allen a lot. For me, he is in the conversation about the top five QBs in the NFL. He and Patrick Mahomes are both elite QBs. Take a look at Lisa Foxx’ piece called, Chiefs: Misplaced Admiration if you haven’t already.
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In 2017, Brett Veach lobbied for GM John Dorsey to draft Mahomes. Veach pleaded with HC Andy Reid with the superlatives regarding the young Texas Tech QB (“One of the best players I’ve ever seen”). He presented game tapes of Mahomes at Tech.
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John Dorsey at Press Conference – Chiefs photo credit
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What happened is history: Dorsey traded up from #27 to pick #10 to draft Mahomes. Keep in mind that in doing so, he traded up in front of the Bills to make the pick. The Chiefs traded the No. 27 overall pick, plus a third-round pick, and their 2018 first-round selection to the Buffalo Bills to move up to the 10th selection to select Mahomes. That’s a lot of draft capital to move up to pick a QB at #10. Mahomes played second fiddle to Alex Smith his first year in the NFL. Then Smith departed for Washington and Patrick took the reins of the Chiefs offense.
Veach took over the GM Role in in the Summer of 2017 — after the draft — when John Dorsey departed and we have not looked back since.
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Note: Aside from drafting Patrick Mahomes in 2017, John Dorsey also drafted Tyreek Hill in 2016 and Travis Kelce in 2013.
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Draft Picks by Brett Veach
- 2018 Round #2 – DL Breeland Speaks (this one was a miss)
- 2018 Round #3 – DL Derrick Nnadi* (still playing for the Chiefs)
- 2018 Round #3 – LB Dorian O’Daniel (he didn’t last)
- 2018 Round #4 – CB Armani Watts*(gone in a trade)
- 2018 Round #6 DB Tremon Smith(didn’t last)
- 2018 Round #6 OG Kahlil McKenzie (also gone)
- 2019 Round #2 WR Mecole Hardman* (traded away in 2022 and re-acquired in 2023)
- 2019 Round #2 S Juan Thornhill* (allowed to depart in free agency in 2022)
- 2019 Round #3 DT Khalin Saunders (now departed)
- 2019 Round #6 CB Rashad Fenton* (gone as a Free Agent)
- 2019 Round #6 RB Darwin Thompson(didn’t last)
- 2019 Round #7 IOL Nick Allegretti* (super Sub OG and OC – Will Play in the AFCCG)
- 2020 Round #1 RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire* (still playing though now as the #2 RB)
- 2020 Round #2 LB Willie Gay* (a key LB with side-line-to-side-line speed)
- 2020 Round #3 OT Lucas Niang*(still a Chief)
- 2020 Round #4 CB L’Jarius Sneed* (Ace pick, let’s hope we can retain him)
- 2020 Round #5 DE Mike Danna* (In the DL rotation at DE)
- 2020 Round #7 CB BoPete Keyes (now departed – had high hopes for Keyes)
- 2021 Round #2 LB Nick Bolton* (stellar LB and Green Dot)
- 2021 Round #2 OC Creed Humphrey* (ace Pick – though a lefty)
- 2021 Round #4 DE Joshua Kaindoh (has never fulfilled expectations and is now gone)
- 2021 Round #5 TE Noah Gray* (part of the TE Rotation)
- 2021 Round #5 WR Cornell Powell (still a Chief but has not passed muster yet, PS)
- 2021 Round #6 OG Trey Smith* (Ace Pick!)
- 2022 Round #1 CB Trent McDuffie* (Ace Pick!)
- 2022 Round #1 DE George Karlaftis* (Ace Pick)
- 2022 Round #2 WR Skyy Moore (disappointed with Moore so far)
- 2022 Round #2 S Bryan Cook* (Ace Pick)
- 2022 Round #3 LB Leo Chenal* (integral to the LB rotation)
- 2022 Round #4 CB Joshua Williams* (integral to the CB rotation)
- 2022 Round #5 OT Darian Kinnard* (thought he would climb into the roster – on the PS)
- 2022 Round #7 CB Jaylen Watson* (integral to the CB rotation)
- 2022 Round #7 RB Isiah Pacheco* (Ace Pick, now the Chiefs feature RB)
- 2022 Round #7 S Nazeeh Johnson* (on the IR but expect a lot from him in 2024)
- 2023 Round 1 Edge Felix Anudike-Uzomah (jury is still out)
- 2023 Round 2 WR Rashee Rice* (Ace pick, has turned heads around the NFL)
- 2023 Round 3 OT Wayna Morris* (achieved starter status, I judge this as an Ace Pick)
- 2023 Round 4 S Chamarri Connor* (over-achieved and stepped up due to injuries in the Division-Round Game)
- 2023 Round 5 Edge BJ Thompson (jury is out)
- 2023 Round 6 DI Keondre Coburn (liked him, has signed elsewhere)
- 2023 Round 7 CB Nic Jones (showed promise in 2023-can play outside or in the slot)
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Above you can see the draft picks by Brett Veach. I note players of import with an * asterisk and indicate whether or not players were “Ace Picks.” As you can see, as each draft year progressed, in the later years he’s had more players of importance as time went along. That’s one reason that I think Brett Veach has been an amazing GM. He’s progressed.
What’s next? See the players acquired by Veach and how they figure in importance for the remainder of the postseason.
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Veach Acquisitions for 2023
KC signed Safety Justin Reid in 2022. He is integral to the Chiefs defense as the signal caller for the back end of the defense! Listening to him talk in Press Conferences provides a great glimpse of his astuteness and leadership qualities. Reid said, after the Bills Game:
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“Middle of the field ain’t free.
There’s a toll to pay. On to the next!”
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Reid at Orchard Park after the Chief’s win – Chiefs Photo credit
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KC Signed Safety Deon Bush and he has also played an important role in 2023 and now the post-season!
KC Signed ROT Jawaan Taylor – who started all of 2023 at Right Tackle.
KC signed LOT Donovan Smith – who started all of 2023 as LOT.
Before the 2023 Draft, Brett Veach noted the various signings and how they fit the roster picture. He said:
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“Yeah, certainly all good players. Starting off first with Jawaan Taylor, (he’s) a guy that we liked from his days in college at Florida. (He’s) a really, really athletic player. As we all know, he played right tackle at Florida, predominantly – he had some snaps at left tackle (but) played right tackle in the NFL. But he’s a guy athletically – I mean he’s long, quick feet, a really, really efficient pass protector and I think it wasn’t a secret that once free agency started, a tackle was at the top of that list and I think we have great flexibility with him. He certainly wants the opportunity to play left, but if we were to draft a left tackle, I mean, we know what Jawaan’s tape looks like at right tackle, so (we were) excited to get him. With Charles (Omenihu), having our roster set up where we’re losing some guys at the time, you know, we’ll see if some of those guys are still out there, but like Frank (Clark), Carlos (Dunlap) and Khalen (Saunders), we were a little depleted on the defensive line, so I think Charles was a guy that really made a lot of sense for us. He can play a lot of base end on early run downs but I think the thing that really appealed to us was his inside pass rush ability. He’s long, he’s athletic and again, we just feel like pairing him with Chris Jones inside on third down is something that will be really beneficial for us. Then you get to Mike Edwards. Mike Edwards was a guy that we actually have a lot of familiarity with. A couple of years ago, when (former Linebackers Coach and current LSU Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers Coach) Matt House was here, we brought him from Kentucky – he was a DC (Defensive Coordinator) at Kentucky (and) he coached Mike Edwards and since then – Matt’s now down at LSU (Louisiana State University). Once we started this free agency process, we talked to Matt and (we were) recalling his days at Kentucky (and) just the scheme fit here and even though (Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo) Spags doesn’t run exactly what Matt did in Kentucky, there’s a lot of carry over. From an X and O’s standpoint that just fit the bill with (Browns S) Juan (Thornhill) leaving here (and) we wanted a third safety. It made a lot of sense. And then the last one, sometimes it’s just really good value with Drue Tranquill. I don’t know if we went into free agency saying linebacker was a super high priority – I think we probably focused on the O- and D-line, predominantly. But then as free agency goes, there’s always some guys that for some reason they’re just out there and they’re really good players and we just picked up communication because Drue Tranquill actually has the same agent as (Patriots WR) JuJu (Smith-Schuster). So when we we’re trying to work through that JuJu situation (and) once we congratulated JuJu’s crew and his team of agents, we we’re made aware that Drue Tranquill was still out there and having had a lot of experience playing against him (we) knew how good he was. (He’s) a guy that can play all three (linebacker) positions. He can play Mike, he can wear the green dot and back up (Nick) Bolton, he can play some Will and he can play some on the line of scrimmage. (He’s) a great blitzer (and) great in pass coverage. I think all four of those guys made sense for us and I think they’ll be really key additions…”
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Veach went on to observe about WR Richie James:
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“Richie James, too. Again, he’s a guy that played with (Giants Offensive Coordinator) Mike Kafka last year in that (Giants Head Coach Brian) Daboll offense in New York (with the Giants). (He’s) a versatile player, you can move him around a lot, (he’s) a Middle Tennessee State guy that we liked. Actually, I think a few years ago, there was a trading deadline period when he was with the (San Francisco 49ers) Niners, I think we actually tried to trade for him. One of those waiver wire cut-day deals, but I’ve always liked the player. I think he’s a very versatile guy and he also does punt returns too, so he can take some pressure off of KT (Kadarius Toney) or Skyy (Moore) or whoever is back there. Just having another guy is something that we think is a plus.”
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KC signed WR Richie James. It’s obvious from Veach’s remarks that the Chiefs liked what was possible when they signed James. I think James put an exclamation mark on his signing.
KC Signed LB Drue Tranquill who fills in as the Green Dot LB and forms a solid triumvirate at LB. When Nick Bolton was out injured, Drue took over play-calling duty. When Willie Gay was injured in the division-round playoff game vs. the Bills, Tranquill stepped up and played a great game. Signing Tranquill was an Ace move by Brett Veach.
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Adapted from ArrowheadAddict.com
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K.C. signed Safety Mike Edwards. Edwards saw considerable playing time in 2023 and assumed a more important role when Bryan Cook was injured. In the division round, Edwards was playing well until injured, and then, in stepped S Deon Bush. At this point, Chamarri Conner (a draft pick) was called upon. He saw considerable duty and played extremely well. In the postseason, injuries culminate and players must step in and step up! Edwards has shown why he is a valuable acquisition by Brett Veach–Another Ace.
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Edwards scoops up a loose ball and scores vs. the Chargers!-Ashley Landis Photo Credit
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Let me be transparent. As time went by, each year’s draft saw increased value in those players drafted, even in later rounds. As I have shown above, Brett Veach made player acquisitions that have been crucially important to the Chiefs in 2023 and beyond:
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To Put a Bow on Last Season
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Yes, our GM has his work cut out for him this coming offseason but, I’d say our Brett “the Maverick” Veach has done an amazing job as the Chiefs General Manager!
What say you?
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David Bell — ArrowheadOne
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