Brett Veach is not showing he is shy about making moves. For me? He is fitting players to the Chiefs that mirrors my list of needs, starting with two Cornerbacks, one inside and the other outside. Of course that list of needs is fairly extensive but he solved two of the six I have listed:
- Inside CB? – Check (Fuller)
- Outside CB? – Check (Amerson)
- MIKE ILB – Check (Ragland) is extensive due to the state of the defense
- WIL ILB? – Pending
- OG Depth? – Check (Erving)
- Nose Tackle? – Pending
- OLB? – Pending
- DE? – Pending (ie, replace Allen Bailey)
Brett Veach has a marching order and thus far, he keeps on, keepin’ on. Veach has resolved problems, closed holes or solved exposures, gained cap space with more to come and economically obtaining players. This is my list above and there is no order of importance. They are all exposures. How Veach resolves them all remains to be seen.
Okay… Let’s Review
Dorsey was out and Veach replaced him. Two of the first moves he made were at Inside Linebacker. He brought in Reggie Ragland (a high draft pick that wasn’t fitting in where he was), and Kevin Pierre-Louis where we swapped a speedster who did not possess the physique to be a LB-ing starter in the NLF for a man who does. The first addition ended up being the excellent addition that I believed he would be and became a starter near to his beginning in the Kingdom. Veach’s addition of KPL to solidify the LB corp.
Meanwhile, Brett Veach added another high draft pick who did not live up to expectations and brought him on board, this time a player fit for the front 5 on offense. This player did prove a little bit in 2017 subbing for starters — of course here I refer to Cameron Erving, OG. We will see what this addition means come the time players put on the pads, Spring Training, 2018.
Optimum Moves for the Secondary
Next, the Alex Smith trade brought a top CB to the Chiefs along with a 3rd round pick. This was a cleanup trade for the Chiefs who do not possess a #1 pick. The addition of Kendall Fuller is a coup of major import. It gives the Chiefs a play-maker in the secondary either opposite Peters or in the slot.
Brett did not stop there. 11 days prior to the Chiefs signing another CB with length, and size, the Raiders released David Amerson. This is, well, a pick that is a prove-it signing. Amerson was injured last year and had 3 concussions. However, he was a highly rated 2013 draft choice and had won the Tatum award.
Many times I have noted the need for a Sean Smith type corner to play opposite Peters. I addressed that til I was blue in the face so to speak. Guess what Veach’s next move was? The signing of David Amerson who fits that bill nearly seamlessly. He is a play-maker with length, he fits outside and has the tools necessary to solidly play on the outside. So in a way, David Amerson is a sort of “dream pick” with conditions but a salary of $2.2m and a 1 year prove it deal.
More: let me put this together for you. As the draft day approached, it gave a comparison of the draftee who rated 74.4 at NFL.com but his comparison was to, well, none other than Sean Smith who gave the Chiefs solid play at corner but was released to Free Agency by John Dorsey.
Let’s be clear about this. Amerson was the 51st pick in the 2013 draft by the Redskins. But he was released. He is more than a year since his last concussion. He had not had previous injury history but missed the 2017 season due to a foot injury, playing for the Raiders. But he was released.
Amerson is a perfect fit for Sutton’s defense presuming he pans out. It appears to me that he had difficulty with the DB coach at Oakland but maybe too, at DC. He has all the talent that needs encouragement and I think the Kingdom is a “FIT”. I have given you my view: Amerson is a fit for KC’s defense, there are some issues with previous teams, KC is the perfect environment for him to strut his stuff, get beyond the past and move forward.
Solid Additions of High Draft
Choices of Previous Years
Amerson, Fuller, Erving and Ragland were all previous first round rated players drafted high in their respective years. These were quality choices. Veach obtained one unsigned free agent — Amerson; Veach traded high speed DJ Alexander to obtain KP-L whose physical attributes fit the Chiefs need.
Veach engineered the trade of Alex Smith and received a 3rd round pick plus another top rated CB in the trade in the person of Kendall Fuller.
Also, Brett Veach obtained a 2nd round OG guard in Erving.
There is no reason for any of these players to fail and every reason to continue to build the KC Chiefs to a winning group of players. If all these moves don’t pan out? Well, then Veach’s history will be short-lived. My view is he knows what he is doing. Modify that with the fact that he was the “scout” who talked Dorsey into drafting Mahomes.
How I See the Secondary
I see Amerson outside, Fuller in the slot and Deuce-Deuce. Back of that? Berry and Parker [Parker is another of my stories — I look for the addition of a Free Agent or a Round 2 pick that is a starter out of the gate –then I see Parker released… wait with baited breath then, okay?]
Cornerback Depth: Nelson, perhaps Mitchell, McQuay… and then we’ll see.
Long shot Forecast or David’s
2018 Sleeper Roster Addition
Will Redmond, Mississippi State CB, will join the starting roster (another top rated talent out of collegiate football that needs a shot at playing in the NFL). Redmond was a high round 3 pick, #68, of the 49ers. He had limited college experience but a lot of talent. It was predicted that he would have to work to adjust to the NFL game. Out of the draft, he was recovering from a torn ACL. It took all of 2016 to recover and the 49ers didn’t wait. The Chiefs signed him to the PS and he is a ‘kept secret’ thus far.
He was not fully recovered in 2017 and thus spent time on the IR and then moved to the PS. He isn’t the perfect fit but he has the tools neccesary to to be a starter in the NFL once he adjusts to the NFL game and speed.
“If healthy, he could have snuck into the back end of the first round. He has a big-time burst, but was unable to put a time down on paper due to injury.” ~Daniel Jeremiah
If there is a time for Redmond, 2018 is it. — There you have it… NSLU!
David Bell – under the snow bank in Idaho.
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