After about 60% of the offensive snaps against the Miami Dolphins in Week 14, the Kansas City Chiefs found themselves without current starting RT Mike Remmers. The nine-year veteran Remmers left the game with a back injury, opening up an opportunity for undrafted free agent Yasir Durant to see some of his first meaningful snaps of the 2020 season.
Durant joined the Chiefs in 2020 as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Missouri. He was one of the few undrafted players to make the 53-man roster in Kansas City. To this point, he had played limited snaps at guard and tackle but played 24 snaps in relief of Remmers on Sunday. He allowed one sack on the day, but Chiefs HC Andy Reid came away impressed by what he saw from the rookie.
“I would tell you that he did some good things,” Reid told reporters on Monday. “I mean he’s young, so there are some things that he can do that he needs to work on. He’s a great kid and again, his heart is in the right place. He’s somebody that wants to do well. It’s just a matter of experience I think there.”
Durant has now played a total of 38 offensive snaps in his career, but in Week 15 he could be in line for more. The status of Remmers is currently unclear and Reid wouldn’t rule out the possibility of Durant starting in Week 15. He doesn’t exactly know what will happen yet, but he did express confidence in the rookies’ ability, especially with more practice repetitions and time to prepare.
“Yeah, well he’s a smart kid,” Reid said. “I’m not telling you that he’s not going to be in there. The one unique thing about it is that he plays guard and tackle for you and can do both at a good level. I think he’s got great upside. I mean the one thing none of us know— he hasn’t had to do it for an extended period of time. So a week is a week more than what he would have had and that’s a plus. One game is one more game ahead than what he’s had before that we all watch and see how things go with him, yeah.”
There’s still further evaluation to be done with Durant, even from this past game. Reid still needs to meet with Andy Heck, to go over the minutiae of Week 14. That’ll play a part in the Chiefs’ decision when it comes to what happens at the right tackle position in Week 15 and perhaps beyond.
