Chiefs Wire managing editor Charles Goldman recently asked for your questions on Twitter and Facebook ahead of Kansas City Chiefs training camp. We received questions on everything from the new defense to questions about individual players.
Below you’ll find the answers for those questions. If you didn’t get a chance to ask your question, check our social media channels next week for more opportunities to have your questions answered.
Defensive rankings
Typically, when a team go’s through a defensive overhaul there is some time for roster-building. The Chiefs are running the hurry-up in order to get their defense built for right now.
There is this prominent theory out there among the fans that the Chiefs need to really only improve the defense slightly to see positive development from last season. The problem with that line of thinking is that no one plans to be the No. 25 ranked defense in the league. Everyone is trying to have the No. 1 ranked defense, to be the best that they can possibly be.
The Chiefs are looking to improve a few different things on defense. They want to do a better job of stopping the run, they want more turnovers, and they want to be more successful in the red zone. They’re also looking to see better play from the linebackers and secondary. It’d be ideal to not see drop off up front in the trenches, but it’s hard to imagine them leading the NFL in sacks for a second consecutive season.
If they’re able to improve those individual components of the defense they have a chance to be much better. They could even see a much more significant jump than to be ranked in the mid-20’s. Think when the Chiefs went from worst to first in 2013 when Andy Reid just arrived. That’s the type of significant change that they’re aiming for on the defensive side of the ball.
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Chris Jones’ contract negotiations
I get the feeling that Chris Jones will report to training camp with the veterans today. He’s never shown any indication that he wants to play anywhere else other than Kansas City. His hold out, isn’t exactly a hold out either, because he needs to show up in order to accrue this fourth season and become a free agent in 2020. He has to be at training camp by August 6 for that to happen. There’s no scenario where he sits out during 2019.
The Chiefs are probably wishing they selected him with their first-round pick in 2016 right about now, because a fifth-year option would really come in handy here. The main qualm in negotiations seems to be about ripping up his deal in 2019 and starting a new deal immediately. The Chiefs are having a hard time arguing, with nearly $25 million in cap space, that Jones shouldn’t see new money immediately.
As for Jones’ absence, like Andy Reid said, they have a new scheme and new coaches. Every day he misses is important when it comes to the learning aspect of the new defense. Luckily he probably has been into the playbook even while he’s away, but building chemistry with his new teammates will be important over the next few weeks.
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Byron Pringle vs. Demarcus Robinson
Byron Pringle has been receiving a lot of offseason hype so far. It’s important to keep in mind, the pads haven’t come on yet. Yes, we saw what Pringle was capable of against Green Bay last season, but that came against a bunch of guys who likely didn’t make a team. It’s okay to be excited for Pringle early on, but temper expectations so that this doesn’t turn into another Jonathan Baldwin situation. I expect Pringle to make the team because of his ability on special teams, but he might hard-pressed to see action in the offense right away.
As for Demarcus Robinson, I tend to think he’s fairly solidified as the No. 3 option in this offense right now. With Chris Conley leaving, Robinson is one of the most tenured receivers that has chemistry with Patrick Mahomes. Not only did Robinson work with him a lot after he was drafted, but if you look at his resume with Mahomes, this a guy who understands what to do when Mahomes improvises.
Robinson runs through his routes and abandons them to come open and protect his quarterback when he’s forced to flea the pocket. Conley was the main guy who did that last season. Remember that sweet TD pass against the 49ers, where Mahomes had to reverse field multiple times before finding Conley? Robinson will likely be the guy who is on the receiving end of those types of plays moving forward.
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Running back time-share
The Chiefs have made it abundantly clear that Damien Williams is the starter. I think he’ll be the clear workhorse and get at least 70 percent of the carries right off the bat. How the other running backs split time will be interesting. I think each of Carlos Hyde and Darwin Thompson will have a chance to overtake Darrel Williams, but I’m not sure that either of them will be capable of doing that. He found a ton of success on limited touches last season. If the Chiefs keep four backs expect one of them to be inactive on gameday, perhaps Hyde, if he’s unwilling to play special teams.
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Darwin Thompson
I think the hype for Darwin Thompson will grow as training camp kicks into full swing. People are just getting to know the person, and they’ll get to see the player in action. He’s been getting some work in with the first team since the veterans have yet to report, so those snaps will be important moving forward.
One thing slowing down the hype train for now is that he doesn’t really have a defined role moving forward. He’s going to get snaps in the backfield, as a receiver and on special teams. As the preseason arrives and we understand better what he’ll be good at right away, I’m certain the hype train will leave the station for Thompson.
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Realistic expectations for the defense
Look, the defense is going to need a bit of an adjustment period. I mean even last season with new faces like Anthony Hitchens, Kendall Fuller, Jordan Lucas, Xavier Williams and incoming rookies, there was a period where the defense needed a minute to gel. Their communication wasn’t great, and even though it didn’t improve much as the season progressed, it did in fact improve.
Realistically, this defense is going to need time to get its legs underneath it. There are a ton of new faces, and everyone is learning a new scheme. It might take a few games for things to click on the defensive side of the ball. It’s not great for the Chiefs either being that they yet again start three of their first four games on the road.
Once things do click, though, expect marked improvement in specific areas like the run defense, redzone defense and takeaways. Expect the defense to take a step back in the pressure department, simply because of the losses they sustained in that area. Yes, Spagnuolo will scheme up pressure, but it’s hard to picture the Chiefs leading the league with 52 sacks again.
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Frank Clark: Better than Houston and Ford?
The big difference that I see from Frank Clark is how he wins off the edge. He’s a very reactionary player, which means he wins with counter moves and an arsenal predicated on technique and understanding his opponent. Dee Ford won with speed and anticipating the snap count, and he was a bit of a one-trick pony in that sense.
Justin Houston wins in a very similar way to Clark. I think Houston very well could have been a fit in this 4-3 defense, I just think the Chiefs saw him as a player that was expensive and past his prime. Will he ever recapture the dominance from his 2014 season, where he nearly broke the NFL’s single-season sack record? I think he’s probably good for a few more 10 sacks seasons, but a $16 million per year average is a lot of money to pay for that production.
When it’s all said and done, Clark is a rising young pass-rusher in this league that fits what Steve Spagnuolo looks for in his defensive ends. That is why he’s on the team, and Ford and Houston are not.
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Travis Kelce’s health
Kelce underwent offseason ankle surgery to stabilize his ankle. He’s back out at practice and says he feels 100 percent.
“I’m 100. I’m 100 percent flying out there, having fun. I didn’t have any issues today and there’s one thing about football, there’s nothing you can do to get ready for what you’re about to encounter out there on that field. It’s just one of those sports where there’s a lot of instinctual decisions, making small micro-decisions when you plan how a guy is coming at you and sometimes you get caught in a bad position. Working these fundamentals, you make sure you stay in the best positions that you can. That’s what we’re working on right now.”
Thanks everyone for your questions! Start thinking about more that you’d like to ask us. We’ll be taking some more questions throughout each week of training camp leading up to the season.
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