Laddie Morse
It should be no surprise to any Chiefs Kingdom fan that Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach is upgrading this Super Bowl Championship team this offseason. Why… because hes’ done it before. Yes, last year’s draft was perhaps the best we’ve ever seen in one group of draft picks. However, this is about more than that. Last offseason, Veach let starting Linebacker Anthony Hitchens walk away and then depended on the progress of second year player Nick Bolton… and boy oh boy did he ever perform. He not only set a regular season record with 180 tackles, but made the play of the game in the Super Bowl with his scoop-n-score. So, what could Veach possibly do for encore? Read on. Find out.
Left Tackle Upgrade
When the Chiefs — Brett Veach — signed RT Jawaan Taylor this week, I thought it might be with the idea that Taylor would slot right into the Right Tackle position and that Veach had other plans for the Left Tackle spot… either bringing Orlando Brown Junior back or trading for Laremy Tunsil. But no. As we soon found out, Jawaan Taylor is one of the best Tackles in the league. OBJr. is ranked around 15th. Zack Eisen has said:
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“Jawaan Taylor at RT is a better football player than Orlando Brown Jr. If Taylor can make the switch to LT and continue to play at the same level or improve, then the Chiefs will look like massive winners out of this situation.”
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So, how do we know for sure that Jawaan Taylor is a better Tackle then OBJr.? Take a look at these stats:
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2022 Orlando Brown pressures allowed = 58
2022 Jawaan Taylor pressures allowed = 21
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When I dug into his tape, I found an offensive lineman with excellent foot speed and long enough arms to knock his opponent off his course. Here’s some video so you can see what I mean (Taylor is #75 in all these videos):
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If you can buy into the idea that Jawaan Taylor is a superior athlete and has better feet, you can begin to understand that Brett Veach was not only replacing OBJr. but upgrading the position. Making the switch from the Right side to the Left side is the major issue here and no one should discount the positive effects of the Chiefs Super Bowl winning coaching staff.
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Omenihu had a message for Chiefs Kingdom this week after signing:
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“Chiefs Kingdom, what’s up with y’all? Charles Omenihu here.
Can’t wait to get to work, can’t wait to come in and contribute,
and let’s go back to another Super Bowl — why not?”
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Upgrading Defensive End
Four offseasons ago, Brett Veach traded with the Seattle Seahawks for Frank Clark. Seattle agreed to trade Clark for a 1st-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, plus a 2020 2nd-round pick and then a swapping of 3rd-round picks, also in 2019. The fact that Veach was able to sign Charles Omenihu in Free Agency already makes this an upgrade… however… I believe Omenihu will be more productive than Clark ever was… on the field. Omenihu will be an upgrade and I’m not the only one who feels that way:
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Matt Miller of ArrowheadPride also believes in Omenihu:
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Miller sees Omenihu as a “starter” and so do I. Omenihu can flip inside and play next to Chris Jones or rush form CJ’s spot while Jones flips outside to rush from the DE position. IOW, he’s flexible… and can play all over the DL. Just what Spags loves. Omenihu is a 25 year old DE with plenty of upside while making progress each season. Here’s a comparison of his and Frank Clark’s 2022 season (all stats from ProFootballreference.com):
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While Frank Clark is 6-foot-3 and around 250 lbs., Charles Omenihu is 6-foot-5 and weighs in at 280+ lbs.. Now, Spags and Joe Cullen have their preferences as to how big they want their defensive linemen to be and Omenihu is their size and weight prototype. While I’ve been sad most of all, to see Khalen Saunders go (to the Saints), he was 6-foot-0 (and 6-foot-0 may be a little bit generous) and 324 lbs., which is shorter than what Spags and Cullen prefer. Consequently, I’d expect them to pick up another IDL who is bigger than Saunders… in the near future.
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Upgrading Linebackers
I know what some of you are thinking, I didn’t know our linebackers needed upgrading. Drue Tranquill, from the Chargers, was signed by the Chiefs (Veach) just yesterday. He is an upgrade in coverage and had 5.5 sacks as well as 146 combo tackles in 2022, by far his most productive season. While I don’t believe Tranquill is meant to replace Willie Gay or even Leo Chenal — and certainly not Nick Bolton — his addition means DC Steve Spagnuolo can mix and match his linebackers as needed. Now with the ability to send in those who are better in coverage and those better in run stopping for any given situation. Here some of his highlights:
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A piece at ArrowheadPride on Drue Tranquill said: “…the 27-year-old continues general manager Brett Veach’s free agency pattern of acquiring young talent with ascending trajectories.”
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Updating Safety
On Friday, Brett Veach and the Chiefs signed FA Safety Mike Edwards, previously of the Bucs. Edwards signing is a move to replace Juan Thornhill and although Thornhill hasn’t been the same player since his rookie season, I’m not sure yet whether or not Edwards will be an upgrade, or a lateral move.
Ian Rapoport reports:
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While some may see this as a depth move, or an upgrade, I think it’s more of a lateral move. However, even in what could be interpreted as a lateral move, I trust in Veach and Reid and see them making the most of their changes:
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In Other Lateral Moves
ArrowheadPride had an article this week sharing the moves the Chiefs have made in their coaching staff, called: “Chiefs announce coaching changes for 2023” and they provided this chart:
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Some might argue that new Wide Receivers coach, Connor Embree, is an upgrade over Greg Lewis who left for the Baltimore Ravens. Otherwise, most of these moves appear to be lateral moves.
Moves to Come
The move many are waiting for is a new Wide Receiver. A #1 WR. The choices still are many and you can be sure that whoever Veach chooses is going to be a great fit in Andy Reid’s system. What you can also be sure of is… Brett Veach WILL sign another wideout BEFORE the NFL Draft for 2023 comes to Kansas City. He and Andy Reid would never allow their team to become predictable.
I fully expect Veach — and Reid — to select… a WR, an ID-Lineman, an O-Lineman, and a Safety… all somewhere in the first 4 to 5 rounds. However, for now, they’re doing a good job of upgrading through Free Agency.
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One of our former writers — Ransom Hawthorne — may have said it best:
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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