Kansas City Chiefs: Projecting the offensive line
The Kansas City Chiefs have some solid members along their offensive line along with some question marks. Where will they rank in 2018?
The Kansas City Chiefs have a middle of the pack offensive line according to most ranking systems. With some solid players and some weaker spots, it may not be your elite offensive lines like the Philadelphia Eagles or Dallas Cowboys, but it’s not a unit that leaves too much concern. It’s not like AFC West rival Denver Broncos who have struggled to keep their quarterback upright the last few seasons.
Without much coming in over the offseason, it does have some fans worried. The most significant loss was Zach Fulton who signed with the Houston Texans this offseason. Fulton for years has been a player the Chiefs can plug anywhere along the interior and not see a significant dropoff.
Last season Fulton’s primary job was taking over for injured center Mitch Morse. Having a player like Fulton, especially on a rookie contract, is extremely valuable. Usually, when an offensive lineman goes down with an injury, the entire unit takes a hit and struggles. In Kansas City, Fulton has kept that from happening over the last few seasons.
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It will also be a difference with quarterback Patrick Mahomes taking over the offense in 2018. Former quarterback Alex Smith tended to make his tackles look worse than they were at times last season. Dropping too far back and into the tackle lanes, fans were quick to jump on the tackles for blame. With Mahomes having a better pocket presence and composure under pressure, we should see a better performance from the offensive line as a whole in 2018.
Kansas City ranked in the top ten for pass block efficiency by Pro Football Focus last season. If the unit can continue that great blocking and improve some in the run blocking, it could find itself as an elite unit come 2018. Unfortunately, the Chiefs are losing their best individual PBE player from last season in Fulton who graded at 98.3.
With training camp coming up on July 26, the team will return to work, and we will see who is fighting for starting positions and even to make the roster. We still have no idea how many linemen the Chiefs will keep this year which will be another indication of who will make the roster. Let’s take a look at what the Chiefs have on the offensive line who PFF has ranking 18th in the NFL.