Fine Tuning the Chiefs: Upgrading the Corners Through Free Agency

Fine Tuning the Chiefs: Upgrading the Corners Through Free Agency – the Kansas City Chiefs are champions. So “changing” the champions isn’t necessary, right? Right. Well, not if you’re still living in the 1960s. In today’s NFL, every team, even he champs, are “fine tuning” their rosters and besides many players each year own the right to choose their next team. Since the Chiefs only have two corners under contract, that’s as good a place to start as any.

ProFootball Focus (PFF) has ranked The 100 Best Available Free Agents in 2020, which includes 15 corners, besides the Chiefs own Kendall Fuller. PFF ranks Fuller at #54 (and Bashaud Breeland at #102), and since he is a known quantity, we’ll at a look a 5 other CBs on this list that I think Brett Veach might be interested in, for one reason or another.

Anthony Brown, PFF #96

Anthony Brown was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys, so naturally, Veach will be interested in him. Or, it seems that way, after he has pilfered both Anthony Hitchens and Charvarius Ward from the Cowboys. Interestingly, both are now starters on the Chiefs defense and played important roles in Steve Spagnuolo’s scheme this season as the Chiefs tracked down the Lombardi trophy. With Brown being listed at #96, his lower ranking appears to be one that makes him appealing to Veach as the Chiefs will likely have little cap money to spend in free agency.

Here’s are Anthony Brown’s defensive snaps for the past four year:

Brown seems like an under-used and maybe under-valued CB: with all the upgrades Dallas has made to their defense over the past few years, including corners Chidobe Awuzie, the 60th overall pick in 2017, and Byron Jones, the 27th overall pick in 2015.

Darqueze Dennard, PFF #78

During the draft season of 2014, I once wrote this about CB Darqueze Dennard coming out of MIchigan State: “a hard hitting coverage corner. He should start on day one.” Well he may have been great in college, in fact, he owns the Jim Thorpe award that year for the best DB in the country, however he’s been anything but that in the Pros. So, why would I consider him for the Chiefs and more importantly, why might the Chiefs consider him? Because he’s played for the CIncinnati Bengals and only the Bengals and they have been one of the worst franchises for the past three seasons. In Dennard’s first two years however, the Bengals had winning records. In Dennard’s first 3 season he had: 583 snaps, 39 games, 4 starts, 1 interception, 5 passes defended, 1 forced fumble, 1 sack, 56 tackles. Not terrific numbers for someone who was the 24th pick in the draft.

Veach has a pattern of taking under-performing players who once were thought to be outstanding, and then turn them over to Andy Reid and his coaching staff to see if their careers can be resurrected. Darqueze Dennard appears to fit that mold.

Ronald Darby, PFF #69

As a 2019 Free Agent, Ronald Darby visited the Chiefs last March but, he was coming off of a torn ACL injury at that time. He eventually returned to the Eagles for more than the Chiefs were willing to pay, I’m sure ($8.5M on a 1-year contract). Darby only played 17 games in 2017 and 2018 combined and that certainly was a deciding factor as he had been a player with repeated injury problems to that point. I won’t be surprised if Philadelphia re-signs him again but it’s probably not going to be for that much money because he didn’t have a very good year as their starting Left CB. Rotoworld said this of his 2019 season: “25-year-old Darby had a typically uneven campaign in the Eagles’ shaky secondary” and that likely has a lot to do with a flexor strain which kept him out of several games.  

Burn Rate: CB’s who are burned on a route over 5 yards.

Cornerback Burn Rates*:

• • • 1. Josh Norman: 10.9%
    • 2. Kevin King: 6.9%
    • 3. Fabian Moreau: 5.8%
    • 4. Dre Kirkpatrick: 5.4%
    • 5. Donte Jackson: 4.8%
    • 6. Bradley Roby: 4.4%
    • 7. Ronald Darby: 4.0%

[*Burn Rate – Percentage of targets allowed in which the defensive back’s assigned receiver gained more than 5 yards of downfield separation.]

Those are 2018 numbers, so we can see why Veach may have been interested in Darby last offseason. It’s that same stat that has me believing Veach will take another long look at him as the Chiefs do everything they can to limit being burned deep by opposing WRs.

Mackensie Alexander, PFF #58

Mackensie Alexander is a curious case. He was so good in college but scout were torn about him because he had so few stats to show for his efforts. However, so many thought that was because opposing QBs refused to throw his way and when they did, he’d knock the ball away or more commonly the ball sailing past with no one getting a hand on it. Here’s a short highlight tape showing his college skills at Clemson in 2015:

Alexander’s Pro career hasn’t been quite as projected and Mike Mayock’s evaluation was closer to the truth than other analysts:

“A lot of people thought he was a first-rounder around bowl season. He is quick and fast, but there’s a lack of ball production. He was a two-year starter, but with zero interceptions. He’ll compete for a nickel cornerback spot.”

Two INTs and 21 Passes Defensed in 4 years is not what the Vikings were hoping for as one might guess. Once again, the physical ability appears to be there and the Chiefs coaching may be able to draw the best out of him yet. That could make Alexander an inexpensive acquisition, with upside.

Bradley Roby, PFF #53

Bradley Roby will be a name that is familiar to Chiefs fans as he played for years with the Denver Broncos. He played for the Broncos for 5 years and enjoyed getting a Super Bowl Ring with them following the 2015 season. After spending one year in Houston on one-year $10M deal, he may be ready to sign a longer term deal for less as that’s the way I believe he could become a Kansas City Chief. While some fans are thinking that Chris Harris could become a Chiefs CB it may not be that ex-Bronco who ties the knot with K.C.. Like Tyrann Mathieu, Roby has taken his talents to Houston for a year and now he might be wanting to go win a Super Bowl. He obviously already knows what it’s like to defend WRs who are being targeted by the 2018 MVP, Patrick Mahomes, so now maybe he’s willing to take a little less to go get a ring.

In his six-year career, Roby has 9 INTs, 27 Passes Defensed, 246 Solo Tackles and his INTs include 3 pick-sixes. Yes, he’s been productive and he should be for a first round pick. While he doesn’t necessarily fit the under-achieving norm that Veach usually goes for, I can see a time — and have been foreseeing a time, meaning now — that the Chiefs are a target for FAs and that could begin with a productive corner like Roby.

Bashaud Breeland improved over the course of the 2019 season and I can see him returning to the Chiefs this year. Any corners the Chiefs can re-sign would be advantageous to Steve Spagnuolo because of their familiarity with his system… perhaps excluding Morris Claiborne.

Once Free Agency arrives and players begin to sign with teams, I’ll begin to take a look at the CBs in the draft. For now, here are 5 possible CBs Veach might want to check into a little more closely. What do you think? Are there any other free agent corners you’d like to see the Chiefs target?

Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne

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