The Kansas City Chiefs have wrapped up the 2020 NFL Draft and are already in the process of filling out the 90-man roster with some undrafted free agents.
Quarterback (2):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Patrick Mahomes |
| 2 | Chad Henne |
I really wanted to keep Jordan Ta’amu, but the reality of the situation is that Henne’s contract basically guarantees he’ll be the No. 2 QB. The best bet for Ta’amu is to outperform Kyle Shurmur and end up on the practice squad in Kansas City.
Running back (5):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Damien Williams |
| 2 | Clyde Edwards-Helaire |
| 3 | Darwin Thompson |
| 4 | Darrel Williams |
| 5 | FB Anthony Sherman |
The first thing you notice is that I have Williams ahead of Edwards-Helaire. I think that remains the case for the majority of the season unless Williams is injured.
This group is surprisingly difficult to cut down. I found myself choosing between Darrel Williams and DeAndrew Washington for the final spot. I went with the former LSU back because Edwards-Helaire considers him a mentor. Williams previously helped Edwards-Helaire learn the LSU playbook in college. I suspect he can do the same for the young RB in Kansas City.
I also find myself wondering if Darwin Thompson will be safe? He didn’t exactly blow anyone away in 2019. I suspect he’ll need to show significant improvement in a competitive group in order to stick around.
Wide receiver (6):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Tyreek Hill |
| 2 | Sammy Watkins |
| 3 | Mecole Hardman |
| 4 | Demarcus Robinson |
| 5 | Byron Pringle |
| 6 | Gehrig Dieter |
This group is basically staying unchanged from the past season. While I wanted to give a spot to new UDFA signing, Vanderbilt WR Kalija Lipscomb, I feel like the players who have already been in the system will have a big advantage with an abbreviated offseason. They might not even have preseason games to show their talents amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Many UDFA’s will simply be battling for a chance at a practice squad spot.
I chose Dieter over others like Jody Fortson and Felton Davis because of his value on special teams.
Tight end (3):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Travis Kelce |
| 2 | Ricky Seals-Jones |
| 3 | Nick Keizer |
I thought the Chiefs would choose Keizer over Deon Yelder last season and they didn’t. Given the need for a blocking tight end, I feel like Keizer might have the advantage over Yelder. A sneaky option is H-Back John Lovett, who Kansas City really liked, but was injured ahead of the 2019 season.
Offensive line (10):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Eric Fisher |
| 2 | Martinas Rankin |
| 3 | Austin Reiter |
| 4 | Laurent Duvernay-Tardif |
| 5 | Mitchell Schwartz |
| 6 | Andrew Wylie |
| 7 | Nick Allegretti |
| 8 | Mike Remmers |
| 9 | Lucas Niang |
| 10 | Darryl Williams |
A couple of notes on this group:
- I have Rankin as the starter at left guard over Wylie, there’s going to be a big competition for this spot.
- I think Remmers sticks around because of his veteran savvy.
- Undrafted free agent signing Darryl Williams has the potential to be the only player to make the team. He signed a big contract with Kansas City. His ability to play multiple interior positions really intrigues me.
Overall, I think the magic number is ten for this group in 2020.
Defensive tackle (4):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Chris Jones |
| 2 | Derrick Nnadi |
| 3 | Mike Pennel |
| 4 | Khalen Saunders |
I’m only going with four players at defensive tackle because both Tanoh Kpassagnon and Breeland Speaks should see time playing on the interior too. The Chiefs ran with four players on the depth chart at this spot for the majority of the 2020 NFL season.
Defensive end (5):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Frank Clark |
| 2 | Alex Okafor |
| 3 | Tanoh Kpassagnon |
| 4 | Breeland Speaks |
| 5 | Mike Danna |
I have new Chiefs draft pick, Michigan DE Mike Danna, edging out Demone Harris for the No. 5 spot on the defensive end group. Danna is a bit undersized compared to Harris, but I think he’s a guy that is athletic enough to contribute on special teams. It makes him a bit more valuable to Harris as guys like Kpassagnon and Speaks will get snaps ahead of him on defense.
Linebacker (5):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Anthony Hitchens |
| 2 | Damien Wilson |
| 3 | Willie Gay Jr. |
| 4 | Ben Niemann |
| 5 | Darius Harris |
The addition of Willie Gay Jr. is the final nail in the coffin for Doran O’Daniel. He hasn’t been able to get on the field, despite a clear need for speed at the WILL position. I suspect the Chiefs might try to trade him for future draft capital or a player at a position of need ahead of the 2020 NFL season.
I have Darius Harris grabbing that final roster spot. He spent 2019 on the PUP list, but Brett Veach was very high on him, tabbing him as a future starter.
Cornerback (6):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Charvarius Ward |
| 2 | Bashaud Breeland |
| 3 | Rashad Fenton |
| 4 | L’Jarius Sneed |
| 5 | Antonio Hamilton |
| 6 | BoPete Keyes |
This group is so stacked with talent now that I’m not sure what to do with it all. Ward, Breeland and Fenton are all locks to make the team. After that, there are a bunch of new faces.
Area scout Willie Davis believes that Sneed will be ready to play right away and that Keyes can be a contributor by the end of the season in Kansas City. I kept Antonio Hamilton on over Alex Brown because of his reputation on special teams.
There are a ton of undrafted free agents that I’d like to keep, but the reality is they’ll likely have to battle it out for a spot on the practice squad.
Safety (4):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Tyrann Mathieu |
| 2 | Juan Thornhill |
| 3 | Daniel Sorensen |
| 4 | Armani Watts |
I don’t see the Chiefs straying much from this group. I could see them keeping a player like UDFA DB Rodney Clemons from SMU if they feel that Thornhill’s recovery from his ACL injury might take longer than expected.
Special Teams (3):
| Depth | Player |
| 1 | Harrison Butker |
| 2 | Dustin Colquitt |
| 3 | James Winchester |
This group will remain the same so long as Colquitt doesn’t retire. The Chiefs brought in two punters to compete with Colquitt. Maybe they’ll keep one of those guys on the practice squad like they tried to do with Jack Fox in 2019.
