As
the NFL offseason is in full swing, it’s a perfect opportunity to evaluate
where each team was in 2017, and where they plan to go in the New Year. Let’s
begin the review of the Kansas City Chiefs.
2017 Season Recap:
Coming into the 2017 season, the hype was at an all
time high as the Chiefs looked to take the next step under coach Andy Reid.
Coach has established a name around the NFL for the ability to develop
quarterbacks and or get the most from average starters while being able to
dominate the regular season without being able to find great success in the postseason.
With most of the Chiefs roster coming back for the new campaign with some key additions,
the outlook indeed looked bright. Kansas City made headlines during the NFL
draft as they traded up with the Buffalo Bills to select high upside, high
potential young rocket armed quarterback Patrick Mahomes. With Alex Smith still
planted as the starter for the season, Mahomes would find his rookie season
holding the clipboard learning from one of the best game managing quarterbacks
in the game.
In the preseason we saw their starting running back
go down with a season ending injury, the premature entrance of another high-profile
rookie was about to take the NFL stage by storm. Kareem Hunt was thrust into
action while the national media praised the potential talent of the young man.
Coming into week one, the Chiefs traveled to Foxborough to take on the
Patriots. Kareem Hunt on his first NFL carry fumbled the ball to the dismay of
the coaching staff. While the situation was short lived, coach Reid kept his
faith in the young man and did it ever pay off. Alex Smith and Kareem Hunt had
a field day being responsible for 7 touchdowns between the two of them. Kansas
City enjoyed a route of the Patriots on day one winning 42-27 with a promise of
things to come. Continuing to find their stride the Chiefs were able to effectively
roll their opponents in the first five weeks of the NFL season. Beating the
Eagles, Chargers, Redskins, Texans, along with Patriots in week one gave them a
record of 5-0 becoming a viable lead dog in the AFC. Entering week six, Kansas
City began entertaining another difficult test this time against the Steelers. Uncharacteristically,
the Chiefs began to lose their mojo as they dropped another game this time at
the final stages with the assistance of penalty flags to the Oakland Raiders. Ending
their two-game losing streak with a win against the tumbling Broncos to get
back on track. Entering week nine followed by their bye week, Kansas City
dropped their next four games to the Cowboys, Giants, Bills, and Jets. The
losses weren’t the main concern but rather the level of competition they were
losing too. With a record of 6-6 with 4 games left on the slate, the Chiefs
realized a full run of the table would get them the division title and into the
playoffs. With a weaker schedule on slate, Andy Reid managed to get the most
out of his club finding a way to win the last four games of the season.
Winning the division and finding their way to host a
playoff game against the Titans, redemption was on their minds to show the
league they were in fact a powerhouse that will produce. Jumping out to an
early 21-3 lead going into half time, the perception was becoming the reality
of how good Kansas City was. Letting their guard down, the Tennessee Titans
clawed their way back to score 19 unanswered points to the disappointment of
Chiefs-Nation. Losing by one point to massive underdog was devastating to the
current look of this Kansas City team, changes would have to be made to right
the ship.
2018 Offseason Workbook:
Offseason Review:
Continuing
the trend of being a regular season success not translating into the playoffs
again put into question Andy Reid’s ability to get his teams over the top.
Understanding they drafted Patrick Mahomes to eventually become the starting
quarterback of the team, the brain trust moved swiftly as their offseason
review began, trading away starting pivot Alex Smith to the Washington
Redskins. Cutting bait with a formula that brought the Chiefs much success statistically
since he became the starting quarterback in Kansas City it was clear the team
had their ideas of revamping the unit in hopes that Mahomes will be ready for
the 2018 season.
Offensively,
the Chiefs were a top-notch unit that posted fantastic numbers ranking in the
top ten in every category. Ranking 6th in points for (25.9 PPG), 5th
in total yards (375.4 YPG), 7th in passing yards (256.5 YPG), and 9th
in rush yards (118.9 YPG), could be viewed as strange in moving away from a quarterback
that was uber- productive from a season ago. The stoke of genius from Andy Reid
and company in drafting Mahomes obviously elevated the play of Alex Smith to
career numbers posting over 4000 yards passing and 26 touchdowns. Now with
Smith in the clear rear-view of plans moving forward, continuing with the youth
movement is the clear path forward. Believing in their version of a big 3 in
Mahomes, Hunt, and Hill, with Kelce rounding out the offensive punch is
something that could view as successful from day one in the new year. With
running back and quarterback all but figured out, adding appropriate depth to
the receiving core will be a must moving forward. While Tyreek Hill flashed his
brilliance in performance, there were times he disappeared leaving the offense
struggling to find ways to move the ball down field. Adding viable talent to
the core with more possession type receivers could do a world of good to this
offense in 2018. Continuing to add depth to the offensive line should be a
priority in helping their young quarterback stay off the ground and progress.
With
the loss of superstar Eric Berry early on in the process, the Chiefs defense
was never the same for the duration of the year. Easily picked apart on a
weekly basis applied more consistent pressure for the offense to play score for
score in almost every game they played. Ranking 15th in points
allowed was the most favorable statistic they generated on defense. In terms of
yards allowed, this unit ranked bottom of the NFL in all categories seeing – 28th
in total yards allowed (365.1 YPG), 29th in pass yards allowed
(247.0 YPG), and 25th in rush yards allowed (118.1 YPG). While the
headlines dominated with the trade of Alex Smith, the defense saw one of their
own highly talented players dealt to the LA Rams. Marcus Peters saw his tenure
in a Chiefs uniform come to an end recently as general manager Brett Veach
pulled the trigger on a passionate high-strung player with an upcoming inflated
salary - choosing not to deal but rather cut bait. Generating more picks for
the draft recognizing the defensive unit has an immense number of holes to fill
the Kansas City brass is obviously committed to getting better.
Rostered Free Agents:
With
just over 14 million in dead cap still on the hook to pay Jeremy Maclin, Alex
Smith, Derrick Johnson, Ron Parker, and Marcus Peters – surprisingly Kansas
City still possesses almost 23 million in free cap space. With an enormous
listing of free agents to contend with totaling 18 players in need of a new contract,
GM Brett Veach definitely has his work cut out for him. Moving on from the
players listed above, the Chiefs top targets for resign look more in the form
of depth rather than starter caliber. Defensive tackle Bennie Logan is the top
priority on this list to garner a new deal, but with the current constraints
this team has, he may be priced out of their plans and forced to look elsewhere
to fill yet another need. Wide receiver Albert Wilson showed some ability but
lacked the overall consistency that would make him more than a team friendly
resign player. Gadget speedster De’Anthony Thomas is another intriguing player
that could be viewed as potential to remain on the team and receive another
contract, but the lack of understanding of how to use the player utilizing his
skillset might force him to free agency. In failing to achieve anything
positive in the post season, we could see most of these free agents leave the
Chiefs as they look to retool.
When
reviewing the contracts the Chiefs have on the books, its clear they have
grossly overpaid certain positions that other NFL teams try in fill with bargain
players. While Justin Houston and Tamba Hali still produce at a high level,
these two players count with an astonishing 18 percent of the total spend on
the cap. Looking for any opportunity to shed salary, former first round selection
Dee Ford could potentially save this team a healthy 8.7 million dollars with no
dead cap applied. While releasing Ford isn’t an option, cutting bait with line
backer Hail definitely is. Kansas City could save 7.6 million if they chose to
remove themselves for the talented player. With the defense only creating 31
total sacks of opposing teams, another prime cut candidate is defensive end
Allen Bailey. Releasing Bailey would generate a nice 5.9 million in savings
while looking to improve on his 2 sacks he recorded last season. Now without
Peters on the team, GM Veach doesn’t have to worry about that salary, but how
to rebuild a defense that will require a large talent infusion to become competitive
again.
NFL Draft:
Losing
their first-round pick to the Buffalo Bills in the trade to move up and get
Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs still house seven selections, adding two third and
two fourth round picks to their board. Though it may be difficult to find top
end talent form the picks they currently have, they will have to get creative
in how they attack the draft. With defense the glaring need with many positions
to fill, wide receiver and offensive line help will be something that shouldn’t
go overlooked. With as little high-end capital that they possess, its almost a certainty
Kansas City won’t be able to find their way back into the first round without
trading away picks from following seasons. We should see a defensive dominated
draft class from the Chiefs.
Overall for 2018:
The
season will ultimately rest on the performance of their second-year quarterback
Patrick Mahomes and how he’s able to develop. With great pieces to round out
the offense, adding more weapons would essentially be favorable to his
progression. Eric Berry should be back to full health and once gain captain a defensive
unit that is in desperate need of high-end playmaking. With little room to make
a run at any top free agents on the market, we could see the Chiefs regress
this year as they try and retool this club.
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