We expected some surprise lineup changes in Week 1 from the Kansas City Chiefs and they didn’t disappoint.
The Chiefs have seemingly made at least one change to their starting defense. Fans have been calling for Juan Thornhill to start over Daniel Sorensen all offseason and it appears they’ll get their wish during Week 1. Thornhill was spotted during pregame warmups working opposite Tyrann Mathieu in 7-on-7 drills. Thornhill was announced as a starter for the Chiefs shortly after kickoff.
This seemed like an eventuality after Thornhill received a lot of press during training camp and the preseason. He had a tremendous training camp, leading the Chiefs defenders in interceptions. He didn’t exactly have the preseason that Chiefs fans had hoped for but he apparently showed enough to get the coaching staff to make the change.
According to ESPN’s Adam Teicher, Sorensen was relegated to second-team duties with Thornhill working in the starting lineup. Sorensen had been the starter for most of the offseason, but the Chiefs gave Thornhill every opportunity to win the job.
I wouldn’t be shocked to see Sorensen play some nickel linebacker and get involved in sub-packages as he has in the past. He’ll still have an important role and contribute on special teams. They may have even cross-trained him to play some cornerback. This is a welcomed change by Chiefs fans who are excited to see a mostly-new secondary in Kansas City this season after a disappointing 2018 season.
