Kansas City Chiefs defensive line coach Brendan Daly has some lofty expectations for Breeland Speaks in 2020.
Speaks was the Chiefs’ top draft pick in the 2018 NFL draft and he hasn’t quite lived up to the expectations attached to his draft status. In 2018, he was forced to play out of position as a 3-4 outside linebacker. This season was supposed to be a fresh start, but he suffered a knee injury that ended his season before it began. He was also suspended for four games during the course of his time on injured reserve. Now, Breeland will get another crack at turning things around.
“Breeland has done a nice job in terms of his rehab, in terms of working post-surgery, he’s had some good time in terms of recovery,” Daly told reporters on Thursday. “We’ll see. I’ve got high expectations for him. The third year, I’ve found over the course of my career, is a year that guys kind of define themselves in a lot of instances. Hopefully, we’re going to see that out of Breeland. I’ve got great anticipation and hope for what we’re going to see out of him when we can get back on the field.”
There’s a lot of questions that remain unanswered for Speaks. He faces some stiff competition from the likes of Taco Charlton, Mike Danna and Tim Ward. If he doesn’t make the type of progress that Daly is expecting in Year 3, he could be looking at one of those players taking his spot in the lineup.
At the same time, there’s also plenty of reason to be optimistic that this is the year that Speaks will be able to put everything together. It’s his second year under Steve Spagnuolo and Daly, working in a scheme he’s better suited for. He had a promising 2019 preseason before suffering his injury. If he can return to full health, motivated and in shape, there’s no reason why he can’t reach and perhaps exceed Daly’s expectations.
