Chiefs: The Rest of the League Just Gave a Collective Sigh… “Uh-Oh”

Laddie Morse

When the Kansas City Chiefs signed OT Jawaan Taylor, I said to myself: “Uh-oh”… and so I’m quite sure the rest of the league just gave that same collective sigh of non-relief, or should I say dis-belief. If the Chiefs… meaning GM Brett Veach… can still work out a trade for LT Laremy Tunsil with the Texans, we’ll hear an even louder sigh of defeatedness by the rest of the league. Why? Because, if you give Patrick Mahomes II more time in the pocket or better protection he will certainly show us even more magic than he already has… which includes 5 straight Home AFC Championship games and three out of the last four Super Bowl berths and two Lombardi Trophy’s… all over the past 5 seasons… Mahomes first 5 seasons as a starter.

Jawaan Taylor

Some may be wondering if Jawaan Taylor is really an upgrade over Orlando Brown? Others may be wondering if Taylor can really play on the Left Side of the offensive line? Let’s address both of those questions.

Upgrade or Not?

In one sense, it’s hard to compare what Taylor did on the right side to what OBJr. did on the left side of the OL. Let’s begin by listening/watching a video by ArrowheadAddict about how Jawaan Taylor is a better fit for the Chiefs offense than Orlando Brown Jr.:

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Quick Feet

The aspect of Jawaan Taylor’s game that jumps off the screen first for me is his foot-speed. He picks them up and puts them down faster than possibly anyone I’ve ever seen.

Athleticism

J.T. is an elite athlete and he’s a far better athlete then Orlando Brown Jr. Where Brown is superior — so far — is in the run game blocking scheme. This is one area that Andy Heck should be able to help Taylor in.

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From a piece by Seth Keysor called: “Jawaan Taylor film review: Meet the Chiefs new (left) tackle” he offers this video:

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Punching

For an offensive lineman, the ability to punch an opponent — to thrust one of his arms out with the idea of throwing his opponent off balance — is critical. Striking a defender is as crucial an OL skill as there is. At this point, Taylor is better than OBJr. is at it.

Age

OBJr. will be 27 this coming May 2nd while Jawaan Taylor will be 26 this coming November 25.

Drive Blocking

OBJr. is a better drive blocker at this point. Ryan Tracy said these two OL are as different as night and day, and when it comes to drive blocking, which is mostly used in the running game, OBJr. is better.

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Maintaining a Base

Jawaan Taylor is rarely found (in fact I’ve never seen him) leaning out of his base. In order to make the necessary moves to thwart a DE who is attempting to get to the QB, an OL must maintain a solid base. Taylor is far superior, at this point, and Brown can often be seen leaning or attempting to make up ground he’s lost with his feet. Taylor’s feet are so superior that he almost never is out of position to defeat a DL.

Right vs Left

Some are saying Jawaan Taylor can only — or best — play on the right side of the OL because he’s a RT and only a RT. That’s not true at all and he only plays there because that’s where his previous coaches placed him when at Jacksonville. Those coaches include: Doug Marone, Urban Meyer, Darrell Bevell – Interim, and Doug Pederson.

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Misdirection

I’ve been saying for quite some time now that the Chiefs would NEVER go into the draft without first addressing the Left Tackle position to make it appear that they already had that position covered… so then they could draft who ever they choose. Signing Jawaan Taylor is as much about misdirection as it is about fulfilling a need. I fully expect Veach to find another DE before the draft comes to town (see below).

His Deal

From Field Yates:

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“Jawaan Taylor’s deal with the Chiefs is quite straightforward: Signing bonus: $18.9M 2023 base salary: $1.08M 2023 workout bonus: $20K 2024-2026: annual base salary of $19.5M and annual workout bonus of $500K He earns $20M in cash each year from KC.”

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From OvertheCap.com comes this:

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“Jawaan Taylor signed a four year, $80 million contract with the Chiefs. $60 million is guaranteed of which $40 million is fully guaranteed at signing. Taylor received an $18.9 million signing bonus and his 2023 and 2024 salaries are guaranteed. If on the roster on the 3rd day of the 2024 league year, $20 million of Taylor’s 2025 salary will be fully guaranteed.”

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What is most astounding to me is Jawaan Taylor’s low cap hit number for 2023 –> $5,825,000

The Chiefs current cap after figuring in Jawaan Taylor’s cap hit with the Top 51 = $7,628,600. Of course, I’ve heard that with the stroke of a pen, K.C. can create many more millions to use this year by converting some player’s — like Patrick Mahomes’ — deals from salaried to bonuses.

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Summary

Apparently, Orlando Brown Jr. is being viewed as a RIGHT Tackle by the league while he wants to be viewed as a LEFT Tackle, and paid like it too. In fact, he wants to be paid like he’s one of the best LTs in the NFL… which he is not. Even so, the Chiefs could want him back… but at the right price. I think that now Veach and Company are glad he didn’t take them up on the deal they offered him last year which was a six-year, $139 million deal — a $23.16M average per year — which included a $30.25 million signing bonus and $95 million in first five years.

We’ve talked about what sometimes happens to a player when they “get paid”… but that often means their performance suffers. I’m not saying OBJr. would have suffered that fate… but since he was seen by most as an average LT… it’s best that the Chiefs aren’t tied down with his — and their — future. From an article by Price Carter for ArrowheadPride called, “Let’s face the truth about Chiefs left tackle Orlando Brown Jr.” he said:

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“Brown is much like a streaky hitter in baseball. For a period of time, they can look like one of the top performers in the league — and at other times, they can play very poorly. But when you examine their numbers at the end of the year, they turn out to be near the league average.”

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You’ve heard me repeatedly say, Brett Veach will sign players to make it look like he has no team needs prior to the NFL Draft. Last night, he signed DE Charles Omenihu. From that standpoint alone, I like this deal. However, he appears to be a rotational/starting type of DE who is just coming into his own. He’s got length at 6-foot-5, which Cullen and Spagnuolo prefer, so what’s not to like? Well, now that you’ve asked… he was arrested in January of this year on suspicion of misdemeanor domestic violence. So, while the signing appears to be a solid one, Omenihu may have to do a suspension. From this article for the redbluffdailynews.com:

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“A woman told arriving officers that Omenihu is her boyfriend and that he “pushed her to the ground during an argument.” A police news release stated that the woman complained of arm pain but that “officers did not observe any visible physical injuries….”

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It’s never — NEVER — alright for a man to put his hands on a woman. We also know that if he’s truthful with Andy Reid, he can work with him. The Chiefs, I expect, have done their due diligence so we should trust in that. Aside from the altercation, this looks like a good signing.

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Omenihu is going to be lethal next to Chris Jones:

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Also, late on Tuesday evening, FB Michael Burton signed with the Broncos, returning to his old coach from 2019, Sean Payton.

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We hear of the term, “Mahomes Magic” all the time… and we need to begin to refer to “Veach Magic” on a regular basis as well. I believe the team will have an easy time of moving Jawaan Taylor from Right Tackle to Left Tackle and we can all watch him excel there. Taylor was drafted with the 35th pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and Veach was reported to be interested in him at that time. However, the team had other fish to fry (priorities in mind) at that point in time, primarily trading for Frank Clark for a first round pick, which they gave to Seattle, and then drafting Mecole Hardman 56th overall. Playing Left Tackle for three years at Florida before being taken by Jacksonville after his Junior season, should make Jawaan Taylor’s transition back to the left side much easier.

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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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