Chiefs Kahlil McKenzie: Left Guard of the Future

There’s been a lot of talk about which pick might be the best pick of the Kansas City Chiefs 2018 draft, or at least which pick is their favorite among avid Chiefs fans. I have to go out on a limb here and say… it could be their last pick in the draft for me: Kahlil McKenzie. When the Chiefs first drafted him I wasn’t sure who they were drafting. Not so much because I didn’t know who he was — and I didn’t — but, because his face looked familiar… his name sounded familiar… his glare was familiar… and I was puzzled so much so that I was in a time-lock of sorts wondering if the Chiefs had just drafted an aged Oakland Raider and I was stuck in a nightmare.

Turns out, my suspensions were real and then I realized it was the son of none other than the current Oakland Raiders General Manager… a man who was an old time L.A. Raider of linebacking fame with several NFL teams of the late 80s-early-90s, not the least of which were the hated men in black… so I was then transported into a Russian spy-ring novel and the Raiders had just successfully inserted one of the biggest (literally) NFL cold war plants — a double-spy, no less — in the history of our pugnacious-pigskin-pastime. I mean, how could we trust this undecided position player to not communicate all of our game signals and game plans prior to our weekly battles? What was I to do? Snap out of it! So, that’s what I did.

Once I got over my insatiable insanity (but was it really?) I moved on to begin to evaluate whether or not Kahlil McKenzie might actually have some value to the Chiefs team: either this year or in the future. What I found was surprisingly positive. But first, I was happy to read this:

Once you hear that a guy is committed to the team, it makes all the difference in the world. Now, can he make the change that the Chiefs are reported to wanting him to make, from defensive line to the offensive line? The first thing I heard about was the talk about his body and how his thighs are so big. So I had to check that out for myself:

In the picture on the left, Kahlil is standing next to a wide receiver named Jeff George (no… really!) who stands 6-foot-0 and weighs 200 lbs so he’s not a tiny guy in the least. On the right, Kahlil is working out and you get a much better view of his thighs. Now, some fans may be reading this and asking why that’s so important? The Chiefs brass has talked about Kahlil’s ability to plant and not be moved. While that may not be a great skill for a defensive lineman, it’s exactly what an offensive lineman must be able to do to keep his quarterback’s jersey clean.

Following each day of the draft, the Chiefs had different members of the organization sit down with the media to discuss their picks that day. After the last day of the draft, they sent area scout Pat Sperduto to the podium to talk about Kahlil McKenzie. Sperduto said:

“We watched a lot of tape on him at nose tackle. We like some of the things he did at nose tackle, I mean, he plays with such a strong base his hands are always tight inside. His head is always up. All the traits that you look at with him, you could see that this kid might have a shot as a really good offensive guard.”

Pat Sperduto wasn’t sent to the podium by mistake. The Chiefs sent him there because he is the area scout that made the high recommendation to daft McKenzie:

“You look at the traits. You look at some of the things that he did. I always thought — because I live in that area — so I always thought  if that kid had played guard from the get-go…. Look at his lower body…. you see it when he comes in. He’s just massive. Massive lower body. And uh, he played with such a strong base. He might be a pretty good one.”

You can read the face of people if you try. After 39 years of teaching and reading the faces of every kid who walked through my door… I could tell when a certain child was troubled. As any teacher should. The point here is that, Pat Sperduto had that “Cat who swallowed the canary” look like Andy Reid had one year ago the moment that he drafted Kareem Hunt.

Now, does that mean anything in terms of how this prospect-turned-pro will perform this year? Who knows for sure but at every corner — so far – I have been impressed by this man who will likely be the Chiefs Left Guard of the future. Could that be this year? I don’t think that’s out of the realm of possibilities. In fact, I wouldn’t feel comfortable betting against him.

At the NFL Combine, Kahlil MacKenzie was asked what his goal for the weekend was? His response: “Conduct myself in a manner that all these teams want me on their team.” McKenzie doesn’t come across as disingenuous either.  So, when he says something like that, you believe him 100%. His manner is real and he doesn’t put on any fronts nor does he ever have, “an attitude” like many players we could name (let’s not go there). Sperduto asked Kahlil, “What if we drafted you as an Offensive Guard,” and Kahlil said, “I’d be willing to do anything. I just want to play football. I want to be a good player in the league. I’d definitely do it.”

Pat Sperduto went on about Kahlil McKenzie and how he has no problem bending:

“His trunk is so big and so strong, and the way he plays as a nose tackle, he wasn’t really, an up-the-field guy, he’s more of a latch on, take on the double-team, show your strength in your hands.” You know, “lock-out” maintain, his head’s always up. So… that’s kind of his forte, as a nose tackle he would have been a two-gap, one defender and that’s it. Whereas, as a guard, now you talking about a chance for him to get into people and move them. Now he’s the aggressor.”

Dave Skretta at Newser.com describes how the Chiefs put Kahili McKenzie through the paces and he came out with flying colors:

“McKenzie drew plenty of interest at defensive tackle when he declared for the draft after his junior season at Tennessee. But when the Chiefs showed up at his pro day, they worked him out at guard, and he merely outperformed three other traditional offensive line prospects. His athleticism and measurables — including his stout trunk and huge lower body — also project nicely to the interior of the offensive line, where McKenzie’s raw power would best be displayed.”

The Chiefs GM Brett Veach certainly wasn’t holding back when he described what he thought of Kahlil McKenzie and what he thought he could become: “This kid is going to look like a first-round pick. He’s an impressive looking player. He’s a draft-able talent just as a defensive lineman… and he would certainly be on an NFL roster this coming fall if he just played defensive line. But when you watched him at his pro day, he just had such a good workout at guard. It looked natural to him.” The right people — the football people in charge of the Chiefs — are saying the right things about McKenzie and I can see why. The more I see of him… the more I like. McKenzie… this McKenzie (Kahlil)… is completely a “Kansas City Chief” now, and he’s fully committed to the process. That extends beyond football fields as well. Here’s a copy of a letter that he wrote to the University of Tennessee after his father helped talk him into leaving school a year early to pursue his dream of becoming and NFL football prodigy:

Personally speaking, I can’t tell you how glad I am that Kansas City is a part of his next chapter. When players go out of their way to express their gratitude to those around them, it is powerful. Especially when they have enough perspective to be thankful for their very lives. It shows a depth of character not nearly seen enough these days. Yesterday, following the last Rookie Mini-camp, some players addressed the media and Kahlil McKenzie was one of them. He made his feelings clear for Kansas City, saying,

“Uhhh… it’s been a lot of fun. I’ve had some good BBQ already, so it’s been nice. I love the city already. It’s been beautiful already (pointing to the outside weather)… so that’s been a plus. Just getting here and being around the guys, the coaches and the facility… just tryin’ to take everything in, but it’s been awesome so far.”

Smiling big… he sounded like a kid after the first day of Kindergarten. Except this kid is going to be our Left Guard of the future. Let’s hope the future is now…. just like they said in Dallas during the draft.

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