Kansas City Chiefs: Tanoh Kpassagnon’s development in 2017
As I mentioned earlier, Tanoh looked out of sort when standing up on the outside during the beginning part of the preseason. Kansas City tried him all over the defense including defensive end, defensive tackle, and outside linebacker. We even saw him occasionally dropping into coverage which was impressive for a man his size.
When it came to defending the run, Kpassagnon struggled in just about all categories. He would try and bull rush with his head down often blowing right past the running back. His hand placement would get him into trouble as offensive linemen were able to get to his chest and have their way with him. Tanoh also seemed to consistently drive inside instead of setting the edge leaving a big lane for the running back on the outside.
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Looking at his game against the pass, Tanoh had flashes but inconsistent. He also demonstrated very few moves when rushing the passer including bull rushes and bending around the edge. His bull rush was what worked in college considering it wasn’t hard to overpower guys from South Dakota State. He relied heavily on his athletic traits which won’t make him a substantial edge in the NFL.
What’s exciting is that he has some bend around the edge that can’t be taught. It’s one of those things that you have, or you don’t. Considering the size of Tanoh, it was astonishing to see him have that ability and bend around the edge. We saw a little of it in the preseason, but it left us not knowing if it could be a consistent move.
Many fans wanted Tanoh to start for the Chiefs early on in his rookie season. The new name always brings curiosity, especially when a player that’s starting there is struggling as Ford has over his course with Kansas City. I was alright with the team letting him learn most of his rookie season before throwing him out there. I thought he was too raw to now be a liability.
As the season went along, Kpassagnon got more snaps on defense with Ford being out. It shows how raw of a talent he was that Frank Zombo was the player that replaced Ford most of the season. Even Tamba Hali was unable to get involved. As the year went along, we saw him pop up from time to time but never had enough film to gauge his development until week 17.