The Kansas City Chiefs still have eight of their practice squad players from 2018 on their 90-man offseason roster. With a full offseason in an NFL program, and a year developing on the practice squad, each player will have a chance to show that they’ve made significant strides. These three players, in particular, have an opportunity to make some noise come training camp.
CB D’Montre Wade
Many Chiefs fans expected Wade to make the 53-man roster last season along with Arrion Springs. The team had glaring needs at the cornerback and safety positions, and both players had stepped up during the preseason. As it turns out, Wade and Springs weren’t as a far along as fans had hoped. Wade ended up on the practice squad while Springs was served his walking papers.
The Chiefs have an established starting trio of corners in Kendall Fuller, Bashaud Breeland and Charvarius Ward. After those players, there will be a pretty vigorous battle for the remaining spots. Guys like fifth-round draft pick Rashad Fenton and free agent signing Keith Reaser will make a push, too.
Don’t count out Wade just yet. After spending a full season on the practice squad, knowing that his name could be called at any given moment, Wade is prepared to take advantage of any opportunity. He’ll be making the most of his repetitions during training camp and any action he gets during the preseason. Even in a change to a new defensive scheme, Wade should still look to show signs of improvement from last offseason.
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LB Raymond Davison
Davison was fourth-string on the depth chart at linebacker last offseason. He was ultimately released during 53-man roster cut downs and signed to the practice squad. Last season, he bounced between the practice squad and free agency.
The Chiefs signed Davison to a reserve/futures contract following the end of the 2018 season. There’s clearly something they like about this player. Frankly, he feels like a better fit for the 4-3 defensive scheme. He has size and speed to play MIKE and WILL linebacker spots. He has a good feel for zone coverage drops.
Davison is already making his presence known during the Chiefs’ 2019 offseason program. He had an interception off of backup QB Kyle Shurmur during team drills at OTAs. He’s also been a standout during special teams drills. The Chiefs have a lot of linebacker depth right now, but Davison could make things tough on the front office with a strong training camp and preseason.
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QB Chase Litton
The Chiefs only kept two quarterbacks on the roster during the 2018 season. Litton wasn’t one of them.
Litton showed some promise last preseason, beating out veteran quarterback Matt McGloin. He spent the entirety of the 2018 regular season on the practice squad, emulating quarterbacks the Chiefs would face each week on the scout team.
There have already been some trials this offseason that Litton had to face. He’s fended off two quarterbacks vying for his roster spot in EJ Manuel and T.J. Linta. He was present for rookie minicamp, where plenty of tryout players were hoping to take a 90-man roster spot. At the end of the day, he proved that he belongs on the offseason roster.
Next up, he has to prove he belongs on the 53-man roster. It’s unclear whether the Chiefs will still go with the two-quarterback approach in 2019. If they do decide to go with just two quarterbacks, Litton needs to beat out both Kyle Shurmur and Chad Henne in order to make it. It seems like a tall task, but if Litton shows enough improvement, the Chiefs might not be able to keep him on the practice squad for another season.
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