The Kansas City Chiefs are faced with a short week leading into preseason Week 4. While starters won’t play during this game they’ll have just a few days to get the backups ready and prepared. There have been several changes related to the roster that hasn’t yet been reflected on the depth chart, so I wanted to write something up for you explaining a few of those changes.
Why Matt Moore over Kyle Shurmur and Chase Litton?
The Chiefs chose to go with Moore over going with one of their two young quarterbacks on the roster behind Mahomes, but why?
First of all, Moore is a veteran with an even win-loss record. He brings 11 seasons worth of experience with him and if the Chiefs need someone to step in during a pinch, he can handle it. Most of the time he’ll be holding the clipboard, but he’ll also have an impact on the development of those younger players.
Look no further than Patrick Mahomes’ rookie season to see why the Chiefs won’t throw a player like Shurmur or Litton in too soon. They kept the league’s eventual MVP on the bench because they thought he wasn’t ready yet. Andy Reid wanted him to learn the right habits from a veteran. I expect that to be the same case with Shurmur and Litton moving forward.
Now, whether one of them can do enough to earn a spot on the 53-man roster, that remains to be seen. Expect that to be sorted out with performances from the final preseason game.
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Carlos Hyde’s fall down the depth chart and the rise of Darwin Thompson
Hyde was the top dog to start the preseason in Kansas City as Damien Williams rehabbed a hamstring injury. He notched the opening score for the Chiefs against the Bengals. He continued getting action with the first-team offense the following week but put the ball on the ground, fumbling on his third carry of the game. Andy Reid kept him in for the remainder of the first quarter. The following week against the 49ers, Hyde did not receive a snap until more than halfway through the third quarter. The fact that Hyde doesn’t play special teams is also a problem in Kansas City.
As Hyde has tumbled down the depth chart, Thompson has steadily risen through the ranks. It’s culminated in general manager Brett Veach calling Thompson the team’s No. 2 RB behind only Damien Williams. This rookie has blown everyone’s expectations away, including the man who makes the roster decisions.
It’s beginning to look like Veach might need to find a way to offload Hyde and his contract in a trade. Otherwise, they might be forced to cut the veteran running back and eat over a million in dead money to do so. All of that for having a veteran presence in the RB room.
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Optimism that Breeland Speaks could return from injury
According to Nate Taylor of The Athletic, there is some optimism surrounding Speaks’ injury. Speaks injured his MCL and Meniscus and the injury required surgery. It’s not clear which part of the knee requires said surgery. Taylor says that there is a three-month recovery timeline for Speaks. He also added that the Chiefs think Speaks could return late in the season if his recovery goes according to plan.
The problem with this is that Speaks will need to be on the initial 53-man roster during the regular season if he’s to return from injured reserve. On September 2 they can send him to IR and have him capable of returning. Any sooner and Speaks would be unable to return during the season. Only two players are allowed to return from injured reserve and they must be on IR for eight weeks before they can return.
Really the timeline for an MCL repair wouldn’t make a lot of sense here. The best-case scenario is that the surgery is to repair the meniscus and he simply needs the sprain in the MCL to heal. Otherwise, we might be dealing with a scenario similar to Laurent Duvernay-Tardif last season, where Speaks is able to come back but not ready to play before the season ends.
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Who will step up at the cornerback position?
Through three preseason games, it feels that cornerback is still a problem position in Kansas City.
Charvarius Ward is the guy that has earned a lot of chances but hasn’t really separated himself. After a good game against the Steelers during preseason Week 2, he struggled against the 49ers in preseason Week 3.
Herb Miller has flashed some nice things considering his status and an undrafted rookie, but he’s also shown that he has issues when tasked with playing contain. This happened in two separate games.
Finally, new cornerback Morris Claiborne played in 34 snaps against the 49ers despite being unable to play until Week 5 of the regular season. He had a few nice plays coming up and making an open-field tackle, but he also had a pass interference penalty on a 49ers scoring drive.
If I were in charge, at this point, I’d be doing everything in my power to secure a veteran cornerback from another team ahead of roster cuts. There’s still time for that but Brett Veach could be waiting to pull the trigger because of a lack of availability. There are rumors that Colts CB Quincy Wilson and Saints CB Ken Crawley could be available but will the price be right for the Chiefs to come to a deal on either?
One thing I’m beginning to question is bringing in a rookie position coach in Sam Madison. Yes, he knows Spagnuolo’s system, but the Chiefs corners also needed a lot of work. I’m not sure I’ve seen significant progress at a position that plagued the team a season ago.
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