Chiefs Sign Reserve Future
Diamond Will Ratelle
Ransom Hawthorne
Every year Chiefs make reserve future signings at the end of the year. These are basically players that fill out your 90-man roster, but rarely make the final 53. There have been a few exceptions to this rule, the most notable being Spencer Ware, but usually not much comes from these players. This year, I’m hoping that can change for one of Chiefs’ signings, former ILB now FB Will Ratelle.
Basic Info
Ratelle is such an under the radar prospect that you can’t find much information about his life outside of his football career at the university of North Dakota. That didn’t stop him from being on the Chiefs radar last year. Ratelle said he had the strongest pre-draft interest from the Bucs, who came to see his workout, and the Chiefs who flew him into Kansas City for an interview. That’s pretty serious interest in a bottom of the roster type guy. Most draft projections had Ratelle as somewhere between a 5th and a 7th round pick, but he ended up going undrafted and signed with the Atlanta Falcons. He was cut and signed with them again, and was cut again. Evidently, he thought he might have a better shot with the Chiefs this time around.
College Career
Ratelle holds the UND record for most tackles in a single year with 110 tackles in 2015 (they play 12 games). The same year, he produced 12.5 tackles for a loss and four sacks. Pretty impressive numbers for an ILB. What seems to have hurt his stock is his size. Ratelle is listed at 5’10”, but the 10 there is rounded up from 9.6”. A guy that short doesn’t have much hope of covering a 6’6” TE. Since few teams employ a strictly run stuffing SILB these days, Ratelle is moving to FB, a position he played in high school. Aside from his on the field prowess, Ratelle is also a smart guy who was named to the FCS ADA Academic All-Star Team and the All-Big Sky Academic team.
Athletic Profile
Since Ratelle is most likely competing with Anthony Sherman, I thought it would be interesting to compare them from a physical standpoint. Here’s the breakdown:
|
Anthony Sherman |
Will Ratelle |
|
|
Height |
5′ 10.2” |
5′ 9.6” |
|
Weight |
242lbs |
251lbs |
|
40-Yard Dash |
4.78 |
4.57 |
|
20-Yard Shuttle |
4.41 |
4.34 |
|
3-Cone Drill |
7.26 |
6.92 |
|
10-Yard Dash |
1.65 |
1.59 |
|
Bench Press |
32 |
36 |
|
Broad Jump |
9’3” |
9’10” |
|
Vertical Jump |
32.5” |
36” |
Purely from a physical standpoint, Ratelle is the far better specimen. While he’s marginally shorter, he’s heavier, faster and much more explosive. Of course, there are tons of great athletes out there who never make an NFL team much less start on one. Sherman is a popular player and a Special Teams leader and the Chiefs aren’t likely to be anxious to part with him. Still, the Chiefs have cut some pretty good players before… if they thought they had a viable cheap replacement.
Outlook
It’s an uphill battle for Ratelle, every year the Chiefs bring in a FB to compete with Sherman, and not one of them has sniffed the 53-man roster. Ratelle is relatively inexperienced at FB and is going up against one of the best in the business. I still think he has a better shot than most of Chiefs’ reserve future signings though, because he’s built perfectly to play special teams. That speed, coupled with his size and strength, could result in some bone-crunching hits and, hopefully, a few fumble recoveries for Toub’s units. If the last man on the roster makes the team on STs talent alone, Ratelle’s odds should be pretty high of securing that final spot. Chiefs love versatility and faced multiple injuries at ILB last year. If he can also prove himself capable of being a run stuffing SILB, it gives Kansas City some good emergency depth there. It would be really nice to have a FB who could be more of a threat as a runner or a passer. Sherman is a phenomenal blocker, but he doesn’t contribute much else to the offense. Ratelle’s speed and explosiveness make him more promising in that department. Odds are, this is just another pre-season crush doomed to failure, but a guy can hope. After all, hope is all we have left. Go Chiefs.
Bonus Thought
Selfishly, I hope that Ratelle makes the roster for the great nickname possibilities alone. His big hits could be William Ratelle Overtures, his team-mates could call him Big Rat. If you try to throw the ball over the middle, you gotta pay the ‘Bill‘. Ok, I’m done. Make it happen Willy, I need this. Also, here are his highlights:
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