Out of the Box: Fixing Chiefs Secondary Before the Draft – one of the biggest stories of the off-season for the Kansas City Chiefs, continues to be their secondary. Brett Veach, and Steve Spagnuolo, were able to forge an adequate group with really limited resources. Players like Bashaud Breeland and Kendall Fuller were able to play critical roles, while Morris Claiborne also filled in from time to time. All three are free agents, and more likely to depart, than remain.
K.C. has an excellent safety group, but they may have to plan for the absence of Juan Thornhill, early in the year. With cap space still a significant concern, filling out the roster with draft picks would be ideal, but being obviously desperate at CB, would make that challenging. Other CB needy teams, in that scenario, would tend to leapfrog the Chiefs. With limited picks, GM Brett Veach will have a hard time moving up in the draft. Fortunately, there are a few out of the box ways that Chiefs can shore up the secondary before the draft.
Free Safety Tre Boston
Boston is a quality free safety who, for some reason, always seems to be the last guy signed, in free agency. While this is probably indicative of a difficult personality, Chiefs have worked hard to build a locker room that can handle guys like that.
Boston should be easy to add for $2M-$4M a year, and brings better ball skills than pretty much every DB, on the Chiefs roster right now. In his last three seasons, he’s recorded at least three interceptions, each year. Adding a quality deep safety will allow Chiefs to be flexible with Mathieu, and Thornhill, to keep offenses guessing.
Cornerback Aqib Talib
Talib isn’t what he once was, as age has somewhat sapped his athletic ability (he turned 34 just yesterday). He remains a very smart, aggressive player who can play well in zone coverage. He’s likely to take a prove it deal, this offseason, and might as well do so with a great team.
Talib would be a stop-gap, but, as a third, or fourth CB, he’s a pretty solid option. He does have some character concerns, but Chiefs should have the leadership to reign him in. If not, his contract should make him easy to release.
Defensive Back Artie Burns
Burns came into the league with a ton of athletic talent, but lacking polish. The Pittsburgh Steelers were, initially, able to scheme around some of his weaknesses, and he had a solid rookie campaign. Once they started asking more of him though, his play quickly went downhill.
Burns has been somewhat preoccupied raising his brothers, as his father is in prison and mother died in 2015 of a heart attack. Burns seems like a genuinely good guy who’s been through a lot, that’s made it hard for him to develop as an NFL player. I think he’s exactly the kind of player, and person, that Steve Spagnuolo, and Andy Reid, can help. Even if Dave Merritt can’t completely fix Burns as a player, he’s got enough ability to be an asset on the field, to a coach who’s willing to scheme around him.
If his workout goes really well and Chiefs believe they can fix him, a multi-year deal for more money than he could get elsewhere could prove to be a massive boon to both sides. The Chiefs would get a young, athletic player at a good price… and Burns would get some stability for his family and a great environment to grow… on and off the field.
Defensive Back Tramon Williams
Williams will turn 37 years old during the 2020 season, yet has shown few signs of age. He’s an extremely smart, very versatile DB who particularly excelled in the slot. With his talent he’ll command an average salary, but is unlikely to require a long term deal.
This would be a move of: moderate risk/high reward. It’s easy to envision Williams excelling in KC as he’s already thrived in a scheme that uses a lot of disguised coverages. The biggest question will be whether Green Bay is willing to let him walk.
Chiefs Secondary: Conclusion
Ultimately, the Chiefs will need to build the secondary through the draft, bringing in a couple of the players I’m suggesting here would make that a lot easier to pull off during the transition and development of rookie DBs. Spags has shown himself to be adept at adapting to his personnel. If Brett Veach feels there are enough options available, in-house, he can temper his aggression, and focus on getting the best value at each spot. When comparing the 2018 and 2019 drafts, it’s evident how crucial that freedom can be.
Personally, I’d love to see the Chiefs bring in Tre Boston and Tramon Williams for a couple years, while signing Artie Burns to a three year deal. If Green Bay retains Williams, Aqib Talib becomes the next best option. Refilling the secondary won’t be easy, but if K.C. can be smart in free agency, and snag a couple guys in the draft, they’ll be in really good shape.
Ransom Hawthorne — ArrowheadOne