Kansas City Chiefs: Dee Ford is not working out for KC

Despite a lot of initial hype, and even more patience, it’s time for the Kansas City Chiefs to start making plans on how they move on from Dee Ford at linebacker.

When the Kansas City Chiefs used their first pick of the 2014 NFL Draft on Dee Ford, a lot of fans were excited. It appeared the Chiefs had found a player who could take over for an aging Tamba Hali, and compliment the talented Justin Houston. Fast forward four years later, and it just isn’t working out that way.

For a variety of reasons, Dee Ford simply has not been a reliable piece for the Kansas City defense. His current issues are mostly injury related, but that’s just the latest thing. Last year Ford had a “statistically good” season. However, when you look into it, you see that there were really just a couple of good games that padded the stat sheet.

Apart from a small stretch of games in 2016, Dee Ford simply has not been a contributor for KC. That simply is not acceptable in a first round pick. Kansas City has to be ready to move on to a new option at outside linebacker.

Is Dee Ford a bust? He stays hurt and disappears for long streaks when not hurt. I would move on from him.
— Chiefs Coalition 🇺🇸 (@Chiefscoalition) November 17, 2017

Not An Easy Proposition

Of course, this is the big problem for the Kansas City Chiefs…if not Dee Ford, then who? Unfortunately, the Chiefs are limited in their resources for moving on at outside linebacker. The “easy” answer, normally, would be free agency. However, Kansas City does not have much money available in that area. Certainly not enough to get a quality pass rusher.

If free agency isn’t available, many people would turn to the draft. Fans generally tend to believe that rookies can be an instant fix for a team. However, that is not really true at all. Most draft picks need time to develop. On top of that, the Chiefs don’t have a first round pick, and will likely be picking late in the second round. Not ideal for an instant replacement.

Now things can change in both of those departments. Kansas City may make some moves this offeason that increase cap space, add draft picks, or possibly even both. Something that might help out there is withdrawing the fifth year option from Dee Ford’s contract, which would save almost $9 million.

What About Our Current Options?

Now, I’m sure there are many of you that think I’m overlooking some of the players the Kansas City Chiefs already have. Most notably, Dadi Nicolas and Tanoh Kpassagnon would be players to consider for replacing Dee Ford. However, I have a hard time considering either of them viable options right now.