Kansas City Chiefs Offseason Grade

Austin Cunningham

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Trades

Chiefs get: DE Frank Clark – A+ Impact 10/10, 2019 3rd round pick



Seahawks get: 2019 1st round pick, 2019 3rd round pick, 2020 2nd round pick



The Chiefs have made their focus this offseason very clear once again by adding supreme talent for Spagnuolo’s defense. They added another super star type player to their defense by trading for Frank Clark who will have an immediate impact playing next to Chris Jones. Clark has been a force so far in his career and many expect that to carry over to the Chiefs this next season. If the Chiefs defense can rank in the Top 15 and everyone stay healthy then it is very easy to assume they will be playing in the Super Bowl in 2020.

Chiefs get: 2020 2nd round pick – A Impact 9/10



49ers get get: DE/OLB Dee Ford



Trading Dee Ford was a good move for both parties. Kansas City is getting rid of an inconsistent player who played great on a contract year. Ford gets a fresh start with a new fan base. He was constantly ridiculed by fans and the media for dealing with injuries, being inconsistent throughout the year and struggling to stop the run. Now he has an opportunity to rebrand his career and show that he can be a productive player that affects the outcomes of games consistently.

Chiefs get: DE Emmanuel Ogbah – B Impact 6/10



Browns get: S Eric Murray



This was a trade where both players could have used a change of scenery. Ogbah simply wasn’t working out much in Cleveland and neither was Murray in KC. A low-risk, potentially high-reward trade by two GMs that love wheeling and dealing.

Re-Signings

FB Anthony Sherman – B- Impact 5/10



S Jordan Lucas – C+ Impact 4/10



Anthony Sherman has been one of the best, and only, fullbacks in the league for years. If he were used more frequently then this re-signing would have a higher impact grade. Jordan Lucas is primarily a depth player but with the lack of talent in the secondary, he could see significant playing time.

Released/Lost in Free Agency

DE/OLB Justin Houston – Impact 9/10



S Eric Berry – Impact 8/10



C Mitch Morse – Impact 7/10



CB Steven Nelson – Impact 6/10



WR Chris Conley – Impact 4/10



TE Demetrius Harris – Impact 5/10



OL Jordan Devey – Impact 3/10



DL Allen Bailey – Impact 7/10



Kansas City lost a lot of big-time contributors this offseason in all of the names above excluding Jordan Devey. KC wasn’t in the wrong though by letting them walk as most of them are either old, expensive, injury-prone, or a combination of the three. There are more players that are gone (Spencer Ware, De’Anthony Thomas, etc) but until they officially sign elsewhere, we won’t be marking them. Eric Berry and Allen Bailey are the only exceptions to that rule, given their long careers in KC and unlikeliness to return.

Free Agency

DB Tyrann Mathieu – A Impact 10/10



RB Carlos Hyde – C+ Impact 7/10



DE Alex Okafor – C+ Impact 7/10



LB Damien Wilson – C- Impact 5/10



DB Bashaud Breeland – B+ Impact 8/10



TE Blake Bell – C- Impact 5/10



DB Keith Reaser – C Impact 6/10



Kansas City have made huge moves so far this offseason and their first big move was signing Tyrann Mathieu. (obviously after firing Bob Sutton and hiring Steve Spagnuolo) Mathieu will be a huge piece of this Chiefs defense moving forward into the new era.

They were able to acquire valuable depth for their defense with players like Okafor, Wilson and Reaser. Okafor will most likely see the most starts out of the three and be a good bridge type player for Breeland Speaks to eventually take over the roll full time if all goes well.

A late free agent signing was Bashaud Breeland, who they tried to get last offseason. Now that they do have him, they have the other starting corner outside of Kendall Fuller and Charvarius Ward. Signing Hyde, Wilson, Bell and Reaser is purely for depth and to add quality players for special teams.

Draft



Pick 2.56 – WR Mecole Hardman, Georgia – B+ Impact 8/10

Pick 2.63 – S Juan Thornhill, Virginia – B Impact 7/10

Pick 3.84 – DT Khalen Saunders, Western Illinois – B- Impact 6/10

Pick 6.201 – CB Rashad Fenton, South Carolina – D+ Impact 4/10

Pick 6.214 – RB Darwin Thompson, Utah State – C+ Impact 5/10

Pick 7.216 – C Nick Allegretti, Illinois – C Impact 4/10



With only seven picks in the draft the Chiefs were able to grab promising players to help their team now and in the future once given the time to develop. Trading up to get Hardman was smart of Veach because it gives them another speedster that can be used in multiple ways, specially on offense and for special teams. Andy Reid is probably one happy guy seeing all of this speed for his offense to go along with Patrick Mahomes.

Their second pick in round two (Juan Thornhill) may have been better than their first due to his versatility and range at the safety position. He will be competing for the starting job next to the Honey Badger. In the third round they grabbed a small school player out of Western Illinois who can rusher the quarterback from the interior part of the line. He will not be taking snaps away from Derrick Nnadi, he will essentially be subbing in on passing downs to help get extra pressure on the quarterback . He is the guy that could end up being the steal of draft in all honesty.

The backend of the draft was purely for development and special teams help. Fenton has a good speed and an eye for the ball, but also has several areas to improve. Thompson is looking more and more like a steal due to his insane balance through hits and showing the ability to get those extra yards on film. He is another potential weapon for the Chiefs offense. Allegretti has experience at all three interior positions along the offensive line and will be a good addition for depth and his potential to take over the starting spot at center after losing Morse in free agency.

Overall

The Kansas City Chiefs are at a point in their franchise where they are transitioning into a new era in more ways than. This is unfamiliar territory for many Chief fans and is a very exciting time. The Chiefs have their own home grown quarterback that they drafted and gave time to develop into the NFL MVP. They have been consistently winning for over five years now and have maintained the same head coach throughout that stretch.

Now that their focus has been fixing the defense and they appear to have taken the correct steps in doing that, there has not been a better time to be a fan than right now. Veach is doing his best to help this team transition into a new era of Kansas City Chiefs football.



Grade: A-