Laddie Morse
The Kansas City Chiefs signed an excellent RB this week in Samaje Perine (1:03).
.
.
However, he’s not a one-for-one replacement for Jerick McKinnon who was the Chiefs third RB last year. Here’s what GM Brett Veach had to say about the addition of Perine:
.
“He’s been one of the best in the NFL on third-down
in regards to targets and pass protections. He’s
a veteran that fills the Jerick McKinnon role”
.
I hear what Veach is saying about Perine, but the reality is, he’s much more than a replacement part. First of all, Perin is not nealry the player that Jerick McKinnon is/was.
.
Jerick McKinnon is 5-foot-9, 209 lbs.
.
Samaje Perine is 5-foot-11, 235 lbs.
.
While McKinnon is one of the fastest RBs in the league, Samaje Perine is nealry one one of the slowest. That doesn’t mean the Chiefs got a bum deal in signing Perine… just the opposite. Perine may be good at pass protection like McKinnon but Perine brings a whole different physicality to the equation. That happens when you’re two inches taller and 26 pounds heavier. Besides that, Perine is pure muscle. Plus, while muscles alone never gave a man the opportunity that Perine has to be great… otherwise, Arnold Schwarzenegger would have been a great RB for some NFL team… how many guys do you know who do their presser in shorts and a camo hat, and that’s all?
.
.
.
Many fans still want the Chiefs to bring back Jerick McKinnon. That’s to be expected when he helped K.C. win the last two Super Bowls. However, it’s time to move on and although McKinnon turned 32 years old in May, Perine will be 29 years old in about two weeks (on September 16).
Some might call Samaje Perine a Full Back. He’s seven pounds heavier than Carson Steele. That brings us the question of who will be cut to make room for Perine? Will the Chiefs place CEH (Clyde Edwards-Helaire) on a PUP list or send him to IR for the season, or even for the four game IR? With CEH having vomiting spells and we (and he) never knows when these bouts are coming on, it reasonable to think K.C. might deal him out of their 2024 equation.
One way or the other, Samaje Perine is ready to make his mark on this team and I recall thinking when he was with both the Bengals and the Broncos, that i wish he was on my team (the Chiefs). Here’s a comparison of Samaje Perine and Jerick McKinnon’s skills:
.
.
While Samaje Perine comes out ahead of Jerick McKinnon on six out of the top ten RB skills listed here, that’s not what I’m looking at… mainly. Perine and McKinnon only match up once on this list: in Pass Protection. That’s why I’m wondering, how so many analysts can claim that Samaje Perine is taking Jerick McKinnon’s role on the team.
If you ‘ll recall, Samaje Perine was the backup RB to Joe MIxon while he was at Oklahoma, in 2016 anyway. Perine’s total yards went down each of his seasons there while Mixon’s when up from his first year to his second. They both came out after the 2016 season and Mixon was taken in the second round by the Bengals while Perine was taken in the fourth round by the Washington team.
Once we see who will be released, that may tell us a lot as to how the Chiefs perceive Perine. If it’s Carson Steele who gets cut, then they may end up seeing Perine as a FB more than a RB. Which, I think would be a mistake. Perine can offer a lot more than Jerick McKinnon did, especially in the Passing game as well as his transition to running with the ball once he’s caught it. He’s able to turn up field and make the first man miss, and do that on a regular basis. That’s not a skill that McKinnon possessed.
Like Andy Reid has stated above, Perine is a good guy to have around, a good locker room person. Here he is wth his wife and children:
.
.
.
Here’s Seth Keysor on Cole DeRuse’s show called “How Bout Those Chiefs” and he’s breaking down a play in which Samaje Perine catches the ball and turns it up field transitioning quickly from pass catcher to running back to make a man miss who has attempted to tackle him, but missed completely (0:26):
.
.
.
Many a Kingdom fan recalls the play against the Broncos in which Mahomes pitches the ball sideways to him and McKinnon turns on his jets and zooms all the way to the end zone (0:28).
.
.
While Perine doesn’t offer that kind of speed, he does make great decisions breaking into the open field and he knows when to cut it outside or cut it inside, at just the right moment. If your a fan like me that questions every move a back can make like, “why didn’t he turn this way”… or… “Why didn’t he break it off that way?” then you’ll love Samaje Perine because 90% of the time he makes the exact move you want him to make.
.
I must admit, I love me some Jerick McKinnon. He was fast and his knowledge of the game came in handy for QB Patrick Mahomes. Like when he slid to preserve the chance to kick a field goal and win the Super Bowl (see at left). However, Samaje Perine brings much of that same veteran experience and although he’s not as fast as McKinnon, he’ a beastly man with power to spare. Samaje may not be Jerick, but he could take over for Pop if needed.
.
.
I think we’ve got ourselves a real weapon like Pacheco has been. Perine will work out great in Kansas City (2:14)!
.
.
It’s official, we’ve signed Samaje Perine, but to do that we had to waive Eric Scott Jr..
.
.
.
What do you think?
.
Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
.